#RQGFemslash21

[raspberryhell]

(Day 6 of @rqgfemslashweek - RQG Specials)  Just a calm summer’s day for these two monster hunters <3 

[ID: Digital art of Bette and Cleo from RQG’s MOTW Special. The drawing is in sepia tones with a texture to replicate an old photograph. They are sitting on the back of a car parked on the side of the road in a hilly countryside. Bette is a white woman with long hair held in a headband. She is wearing a button down shirt with a large belt and a long skirt. A ghost trail is coming out of the bottom of the skirt where her feet should be. Cleo is a black woman with a short afro held in a bandana. She is wearing a sleeveless sweater tank and bell bottom pants. Bette is smiling sadly while looking at Cleo, who's smiling with her eyes closed relaxedly. Across the top are the words “Bette + Cleo, Summer 1975” written in pencil. End ID] 

[rqgfemslashweek]

RQG Femslash Week is coming up!

In just under three weeks, we’ll be hosting the second annual RQG Femslash Week! A quick reminder of the prompts:

Day 1 (March 21): Firsts Day 2 (March 22): Fears Day 3 (March 23): AU/Canon Divergent Day 4 (March 24): Hurt/comfort Day 5 (March 25): Rare ship Day 6 (March 26): RQG Specials Day 7 (March 27): Goodbyes

Rules | Homepage | Twitter | AO3 Collection

[kellanswritingblog]

Day 2 of @rqgfemslashweek: Fears

Kiko has an unusual fear for someone who works on airships.

“Look!  You can see my village from here!”  

Kiko had been eager to see the area where Azu grew up.  She’d barely spent any time in Africa at all, and never any time in Kenya, as her jobs on airships tended to remain more localized around Japan.  But as things grew more serious with Azu, she wanted to learn and experience every aspect of her life.

However, that now meant that she was stood at the top of a mountain, with Azu at her side and a dangerous drop in front of them.  Sure, they weren’t that close, but close enough.

“Oh, yeah!  There it is!”  Kiko replied, hoping that Azu didn’t notice the tremor in her voice.

She did, though, of course.

“Are you alright?” She turned to Kiko.  “Was it the hike up here?”

Kiko shook her head. “I’m fine.  I just… yeah, I’m fine.”

Azu slumped.  “Was it something with my family?  I know they can be a lot, and we have spent several days with them…”

“No!  Your family is amazing, Azu, seriously!”  Kiko reached out and grabbed Azu’s hand, squeezing it gently.  “I mean, I do appreciate the break of climbing up here so we can take a few days for ourselves, but… that’s not what’s going on.  I’m…”  She took a deep breath.  “I’m afraid of heights.”

For a moment, Azu stared at her, and then she laughed.

“What?  It’s not funny!”

“No, no, it isn’t, I am sorry,” Azu said, and she covered her smile behind a hand.  “It’s just… you work on airships.  Flying ships!  In the sky!  Hundreds of feet in the air!”

“Yeah, and it’s fine as long as I’m on the ship.  If I don’t look over the edge, it’s all good.  But here, there’s just a bit of rock and then a very long drop and no harness to catch me if I fall.”

“You don’t have to stand so close to the edge, then,” Azu suggested, and she took several steps back in demonstration.  Kiko moved back as well, and then Azu wrapped her arms around Kiko’s waist from behind. “And I may not be a harness, but hopefully I can catch you if you start to fall.”

Kiko smiled and leaned her head back against Azu.  “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.  I’m sorry for laughing.”

“It’s alright, it is pretty funny when you think about it.”

They both chuckled and held onto each other as they stared out at the horizon.  Azu started to point out other interesting areas, offering up factoids and stories from her life.  Kiko listened intently, eager to know more about Azu as she remained safe and secure in her arms.

[ivy-alexandria-lovebot]

Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Rusty Quill Gaming (Podcast) Rating: Not Rated Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Azu & Sasha Racket Characters: Azu (Rusty Quill Gaming), Sasha Racket Additional Tags: Hurt/Comfort Summary:

Azu tries to comfort Sasha as she deals with her uncle and the whole being undead thing.

[raspberryhell]

(Day 3 of @rqgfemslashweek​ - AU/Canon Divergence) May I interest you in a very elaborate RQG AU that ultimately leads up to Azu and Kiko having a dramatic sword fight? (more details on what I call the Mutiny AU in the read more)

[ID: Digital art of Azu and Kiko on the deck of the airship in the rain with two other drawings on the sides. Azu is a muscular Black orc with close shaved hair. She is wearing full body armor and carries an axe. Kiko is a muscular Japanese human with dark hair that goes to her mid-back. She is wearing a plain sleeveless shirt, pants, boots, and a bandana around her neck and carries a pirate sword. The main image is of Azu facing up towards Kiko, who looks down angrily as she stands with a foot up on a railing on the deck of the airship. Behind her at the ship’s wheel is Amelia Earhart, a white gnome with short hair wearing a large coat and goggles. In the drawing in the top left, Kiko is yelling angrily and swinging her sword down on Azu. Azu is straining back tears as she holds up the handle of her axe to block the attack. In the drawing in the bottom right, Kiko is sitting on the ground with a hand held around her other arm as if injured. Azu, with a fresh cut on her face, is kneeling in front of her, axe held down, bitterly smiling as she talks to Kiko. The background is dark and near monochrome with some blue and purple hues. The sky above is stormy with a streak of lightning. End ID]

So remember when during that first date where Kiko said that she would follow Earhart anywhere because of her connection to her adopted dad? I think that was a set up for if Zolf’s mutiny plan had to have happened that there would be at least one person on the ship who would not want to join in. So this AU is basically: Earhart starts steering the ship directly into harm’s way without the crew’s approval, they start the mutiny, the only one not on board is Kiko so she breaks out into full swashbuckling pirate mode to protect Earhart.

(I am by no means an experienced fic writer so here is the scene summed up to the best of my ability. To set the mood, imagine they are on the deck of the ship as it passes through a dramatic thunderstorm) 

Knowing that she is horribly outnumbered, Azu attempts to talk to Kiko to convince her to give up peacefully. Kiko feels cornered with Earhart behind her so she jumps down to start attacking Azu. (insert heavy rainfall here) Azu, following Aphrodite’s “Do no more harm than necessary”, and also because this takes place after their first date so Azu already has feelings for Kiko, can’t bring herself to fight back. Even alone Azu could easily take down Kiko but that’s not what she wants. All Azu can do is block her attacks and attempt to talk her out of fighting.

Kiko gets a few good hits in and Azu gets a few inspirational words out in return. (Lightning intermittent) Kiko is nearly brought down emotionally through Azu’s power of love and friendship, but still has some fight in her. In one last moment where it looks like Kiko might throw Azu off the ship or deal some other type of killing blow, Azu deems a small bit of fighting back necessary and gives a non-lethal swing at Kiko. 

Kiko realizes just how much Azu is holding back, letting her in on both how much power Azu /really/ has and how much Azu cares for her to not have knocked her out immediately as soon as they started fighting. Kiko finally gives up and Azu kindly tells her that she understands why she wanted to protect Earhart, but that it’s time to let go and move on if she’s not going to respect her safety and let her recklessly get killed. (both symbolic and literal storm clears up) Kiko realizes that can trust Azu, who values her as more than just a crewmate.

Azu reaches out a hand to Kiko, helping her up and giving her a tight hug now that they both feel safe. Maybe they cry a bit. Earhart is apprehended and they continue sailing on to Svalbard. Nothing bad happens to them ever again :) 

yes this was very much fueled by my gayass desire for more women to have homoerotic sword fights with each other so as thank you for reading all the self indulgent bullshit here is a much softer AzuKiko

[ID: A digital sketch of Azu and Kiko shown from the side in shades of purple. Azu is wearing a large coat over her armor. Kiko is wearing a coat and her hair is up in a ponytail. Their eyes are closed, they are holding hands and kissing. End ID]

[kellanswritingblog]

Day 4 of @rqgfemslashweek: Hurt/Comfort

Sometimes Sasha feels that she doesn’t fit in a relationship with Azu and Kiko, but they’re always there to remind her that they love her and want her with them.

Sasha loved being on airships, and getting to fly alongside Kiko and Azu made finding work aboard one after the world was saved a dream come true.  There weren’t many people to stab, but the ships held lots of small spaces for Sasha to crawl into when she needed some time alone.  

But when she wasn’t alone, her two lovers were there with her.

Sasha had never expected to find some sort of happily ever after, not by herself, not with someone special, and certainly not with two someones.  Most days, Sasha felt safe in knowing that there were people who loved her and that they would do anything for her, and that she loved them even when she had closed herself off to caring for so long.

Some other days… she had a harder time feeling worthy of anything.

While Sasha was a part of their trio, sometimes she felt like the odd one out.  Azu and Kiko were both open with their emotions and they liked to cuddle and hug and kiss when Sasha often had a harder time with those aspects of a relationship.  Though they insisted that they didn’t mind, the doubt still plagued her.

And one day, when she saw Azu and Kiko together on the deck, sat close together on a bench, blushing and giggling like teenagers, that doubt ran rampant.

At least Sasha knew plenty of places to hide and mope in peace.  There was a small corner of the engine room where no one would find her, hidden amongst the steam and the veil of moving mechanisms.

She wasn’t sure how long she stayed there.  Long enough that her stomach began to rumble, but she’d gotten used to three meals a day so that didn’t mean much; even the meager meals produced on the airship were lifetimes better than most of the food in Other London, save for a good ole eel in a bun, of course.  Sooner or later, she would have to emerge and tend to her duties.  For now, though, she would stay put and remind herself that she was meant to be alone.

“Sasha?  Sasha, are you in here?”

Sasha snapped her head up and almost clanged it on a pipe when she heard Kiko’s voice calling for her. Part of her wanted to stay silent and let Kiko pass on, but instead she crawled out of her hiding place and stood, arms crossed and looking intently at the floor.

“There you are!”  Kiko turned to the door and shouted down the passage, “She’s in here!”

“Yeah, I’m here. What’s going on?”

“We were worried about you. We hadn’t seen you in hours. Which, granted, isn’t all that surprising, but you’ve been sort of distant recently.”

Azu hurriedly entered the room and beamed when she saw Sasha.

“Well, you found me,” Sasha snapped.  “What do you want?”

“We want to make sure you’re alright,” Azu said softly, her voice a melody against the din of machinery. “If you just need time to be alone, that’s fine, but please let us know.  And if there’s something wrong, you know we’ll help you and support you.”

“Yeah,” Kiko added, nodding.

Sasha wanted to cry. They cared so much, and she didn’t deserve any of it.

“Can we go talk on the deck?”  She asked.

“Of course.”

The three of them left the engine room and climbed back into the open air.  Sasha led them to a more isolated area of the deck, where she leaned against the railing and gazed into the distance.  Kiko and Azu each took a place on either side of her, not too close that she felt smothered, but not so far away that they weren’t there to comfort her.

Sasha took a while to get her thoughts sorted and to convince herself that, yes, she did need to say all of this, she shouldn’t just keep it all welled up inside of herself to rot and fester.

“Sometimes I think I don’t fit.  With you two, you know.”

“What do you mean?” Azu asked.  

There was such sincerity in her question.  Did she really have no idea?

Sasha sighed.  “You two are both outgoing and you like to hold each other and kiss each other and you two just fit so well together. And I’m just sort of… here.  I realized I should just stop kidding myself that I belong in a relationship with the both of you.”

“Sasha!”  Kiko exclaimed.  “What, no, that’s… Can I touch you?”

She shrugged, and Kiko placed a hand on Sasha’s arm.  

“Sasha, we love you. Just because you’re not as, I don’t know, openly romantic as we might be doesn’t mean anything.”

“You do fit with us,” Azu insisted.

Sasha let out a heavy breath and shook her head, not sure if she could even begin to believe that.

“You know, I sometimes feel like I don’t fit in with the two of you,” Kiko confessed.  “You went through so much together before I came along, and I can never really know what all of that was like.  And, yeah, it’s hard sometimes, but then I spend some time with one of you or both of you and I realize that it doesn’t matter so much. What matters is how we all work together now, and I think that what we have is wonderful.”

Azu nodded.  “I agree.  I love what we have together.  Just because I have a different relationship with you, Sasha, than I do with Kiko doesn’t mean that either is superior.  They’re just different.  I can’t say that I’ve ever really felt like the odd one out here, because even when the two of you are talking about things I don’t understand or swinging from the ropes with ease while I clank around on deck, I just feel so happy at seeing the two people I love be happy together.”

Sasha glanced at Azu and Kiko on either side.  “I don’t want to, like, waste your time with me or force yourself to pretend like you want me around when you don’t.”

“We’re not wasting our time.”

“And we do want you around.”

“Really?”  Sasha spun around from the railing so that she could see both of them at the same time.

“Of course.”

“I might… I might need reminders of that sometimes,” Sasha admitted, the closest she would ever come to requesting outright validation.  “And if it changes, just tell me, don’t quietly shut me out.”

“Promise.”  Kiko smiled.

“Right, well… thanks.” Sasha smiled and looked back and forth between Azu and Kiko.  “Can I have a hug?”

“Any time!”  Azu cried, laughing, and then gently swooped in to scoop Sasha into her arms.  Kiko stepped up to Sasha’s other side and hugged her as well, pressing a quick kiss to the top of her head as she did so.

Sasha gripped their arms tight.  She didn’t want to let go.

“I love you.  Both of you,” she said.

“I love you too,” they echoed, squeezing Sasha a little bit tighter as they did.

Back in Other London, deep below the earth, Sasha grew used to the idea that she was unlovable and unworthy of any care.  But now, miles above the ground, she was starting to think that, maybe, she was loved after all.

[rqgfemslashweek]

[Drumroll, please...]

We’re excited to announce the prompts for this year’s RQG Femslash Week! If you have any questions, please let us know and we’ll clarify for you. 

Day 1: Firsts Day 2: Fears Day 3: AU/Canon Divergent  Day 4: Hurt/comfort Day 5: Rare ship Day 6: RQG Specials Day 7: Goodbyes

Can’t wait to see what everyone creates! Tag your stuff with #RQGFemslash21 so that we can find it <3

[ID: a minimalistic graphic reading “femslash week prompts”, with ‘femslash week’ in a bold white serif font, with ‘prompts’ in a red cursive font under it on the right of the image. the left of the image is a minimalistic, torso-up red lineart of a person facing to the left. one arm is crooked, with their hand covering their face. flowers bloom from the back of their neck and over their wrist]

[kellanswritingblog]

Day 3 of @rqgfemslashweek: AU/Canon Divergent

Sasha and Grizzop are rescued from Ancient Rome, and find themselves in quarantine in Japan with Azu and Hamid.  While there, Sasha realizes some things about her feelings for Azu.

The solid bars and cold stone almost reminded Sasha of Other London.  Even if she was locked up in some strange quarantine, at least the company was better, with Hamid sleeping soundly on a cot, Grizzop dozing off in a corner, and Azu sitting across from her.

Azu…

It would be easy to say nothing.  Sasha was good at keeping her mouth shut.  She pulled her knees up to her chest and closed her eyes tight, trying not to think on any of the feelings that rampaged around her chest.

“Sasha?  Are you alright?”

“Yeah, fine.  You?”

Azu cocked her head to the side and smiled ever so slightly at Sasha’s feigned apathy.  “You’ve been through a lot.  I want to make sure you’re okay.”

Sasha squeezed her knees tighter.  “I’m just glad that you and Hamid and Einstein found a way to get me and Grizzop back to the present before we spent too long in the past.  Rome wasn’t a good place, in any time.”

“Me too.”

When Azu smiled and beamed, overjoyed that they’d managed to rescue their friends, Sasha’s heart began to race again.

She was good at keeping her mouth shut.  But maybe… maybe Azu deserved the truth.

Azu waited when Sasha opened her mouth to speak several times, even though no words came out right away.  Eventually, Sasha said, “There’s more than the whole time-travel thing.”

“Oh?”

“I was scared.”

“I can’t blame you for that. You were nearly trapped in a strange place in a strange time.”

“It’s not just that,” Sasha snapped, more angrily than intended.  She offered an apologetic look to Azu, then stared at her knees again as she continued.  “I was most afraid that I’d never see you lot again.  You, Hamid, Einstein, Zolf, Wilde… At least I would’ve had Grizzop, but it’s not the same.”

Azu nodded.  “I understand.  I can’t imagine losing everyone I know like that.”  She shuddered at the thought.

“But, um… when it came to you… I missed you in a different way.  Like, yeah, we were only gone for a bit, but I still missed all of you, because I thought we were gone for good.  And when I missed you, it was different than how I missed Hamid.”

“What do you mean?”

“I don’t know, that’s why it’s so confusing!”  Sasha exclaimed.  Grizzop stirred at the sound, but then his head lolled forward again.  The symbol of Artemis was still held tightly in his hands.

Azu started to reach out her hand, to provide Sasha some comfort, then hesitated for fear of touching Sasha when she didn’t want to be touched.

“It’s like… when I’m with you, my stomach gets all twisted up in knots, but I want to be with you, I want the weird feeling,” Sasha pondered aloud, before lifting her head and speaking at Azu directly for the first time in the whole conversation. “I really like you, Azu.  And not just as contractually obligated companions, or quest buddies, or…”

“Oh…”

“Yeah, I’m sorry.”  Sasha looked away again.  She should’ve just kept her mouth shut.

Out of the corner of her eye, Sasha watched Azu scooch a little bit closer to her in the cell.

“Don’t be sorry.  I’m flattered.  And I’d be lying if I said I didn’t have feelings for you as well.”

Sasha paused.  “Wait, really?”

Azu chuckled, and Sasha couldn’t help but smile.  “Is it that hard to believe?  You’re incredible in so many ways, and I’ve been fortunate to get to know you at all.”

“Hmm… I know you like hugs and stuff.  Do you think we could do a hug?”

“Of course.”

Sasha released the grip on her knees and slowly allowed herself to be embraced by Azu.  She was warm and safe, and, after a moment of hesitation, Sasha buried her face in Azu’s shoulder and held her tight.

“I don’t know how to do this,” Sasha admitted when she finally extracted herself from the hug.  “This whole ‘feelings’ thing.”

“We can figure it out,” Azu said with a smile.  “We’ll take it day by day.  What matters is that we have the chance to try now.”

Sasha smiled, then slowly and methodically reached out her hand so that she could hold onto Azu’s.

“I haven’t looked forward to much for a long time.  I always expect it to go wrong.  But this?” Sasha gestured between the two of them with her free hand.  “I’m really looking forward to this.  To you and me.”

[kellanswritingblog]

Day 6 of @rqgfemslashweek: RQG Specials

Lady Voluptuousness has a lot of hair, but Apocrypha is there to help her brush out the tangles.

“I don’t understand how you keep your hair tied up all the time,” Lady Voluptuousness pondered aloud.

There was plenty of magic involved in maintaining her own curtains of hair, but it still needed tending to occasionally.  And at that moment, it was Apocrypha that did the tending, carefully brushing through the tangles that magic couldn’t keep at bay.

“Oh, I don’t know.  I think it’s more suitable for someone like myself.  Wouldn’t want the PAs to think they could pull one over me,” Apocrypha replied, then added, “I think you’re all set.”

“Thank you.”  Lady moved her hair to the side so that she could turn around and face Apocrypha.  “I’ve never even seen you with your hair down.”

“I don’t let anyone see me looking less than pristine, you know that.”

Lady reached out toward Apocrypha’s head.  Though she watched with a wary eye, Apocrypha allowed her to slowly undo the tight bun that she always wore.  Wavy hair fell down past her shoulders, and she adjusted it quickly with her fingers as Lady gasped.

“You look lovely,” she breathed.

Apocrypha glanced over at her.  She was never one for shyness, but the softness in Lady’s voice made her blush and left her at a loss for words.

As such, she slowly leaned forward, brushed a stray strand of hair from Lady’s face, and kissed her. Lady laced her fingers through Apocrypha’s loose hair in turn as she caressed her cheek and pulled her in a little bit closer.

Some time later, Lady pulled back, a smirk on her lips.

“Where does kissing me rank in comparison to kissing that furby?”  She asked.

“You have got to let that go.”

“No, no, I don’t think I do.  You kissed a furby.”

“I did far more than kiss that furby, thank you very much,” Apocrypha replied haughtily.  “And the threesomes with ReceptionistBot… whew.  You know, I’m sure they wouldn’t mind making it a foursome, if you were ever interested…”

“I think I’ll leave those robotic fancies to you.”

“Suit yourself.”

“You didn’t answer my question,” Lady said.

“Didn’t I?”  Apocrypha playfully curled some of Lady’s hair around her finger.  “It’s just… different, that’s all.  Kissing a beak and kissing lips are varied experiences, and I wouldn’t trade either of them.  But I especially wouldn’t trade kissing you.”

“I suppose I’ll allow that.”

“Good.  Then… where were we?”

Lady pulled Apocrypha in for another kiss, this time holding her with more fervor and passion.  They were sexy battle wizards, after all.  There was a time for wizardry and a time for battle, but this was most certainly the time for the first part of their moniker.

[kellanswritingblog]

Day 1 of @rqgfemslashweek: Firsts

Cleo’s first dance with Bette while she’s alive, and their first dance when Cleo knows that Betty is in fact her Bette.

The radio host stopped his yammering and the next song started to play, a slower melody, meant for dancing with a partner, and Bette’s face lit up.

“Dance with me?”  She asked Cleo, though it was more a statement than a request.

“I, uh…”  

The pair were sprawled out under the stars, listening to music while they chatted about every little thing or savored the other’s presence in the stillness of their surroundings.  Despite how much she had enjoyed their date, Cleo hesitated.

“Oh, come on.  Let’s dance!”  Bette stood and held out her hand for Cleo to join her.

Cleo didn’t move and looked away.  “I’ve never danced with someone before.”

“What do you mean?”

“I just… never have.”

Bette smiled.  “It’s not like you can mess it up.  And, besides, your first dance should be with your adorable girlfriend on a bright, moonlit night, after all.”

How could Cleo possibly say no to her?  She took Bette’s hand and crawled to her feet, then waited, unsure of how to proceed. Sure, she had seen plenty of couples dance together, but not so many that looked like her and Bette.

“Alright, just put your hand on my waist like this…  And then the other one goes here, in my hand.  Now we just… dance.”

Cleo let Bette direct her positioning and movements, but soon enough she fell into the motion.

“Okay, this isn’t so bad,” Cleo remarked after a few moments.

“Were you so afraid of dancing?”

“I don’t know, it’s silly. But I didn’t want to mess it up.”

“Oh, Cleo…”  She laughed, and held her a little bit tighter.

Even if she was still nervous, it was a different kind of anxiety now, one that came from Bette being so close, her eyes gazing softly at Cleo, and her lips were right there…

“Can I kiss you?”

“Now we both know you know how to do that,” Bette teased, then leaned into Cleo’s kiss.  They held each other close, still swaying absentmindedly to a new song as their lips met, and Cleo realized that maybe the whole dancing thing wasn’t quite as bad as she’d feared.

***

Cleo sat upright at the sound, then turned to Bette.  

“Do you remember this song? It was our first dance.”

Bette’s incorporeal form sat on the hood of Sam’s car while the not-a-child had wandered off, muttering something about burger salesmen, leaving the two of them alone to keep watch. At Cleo’s words, she laughed, a melodious and ringing echo that filled Cleo’s heart with hope.

“I do!  That was a perfect night.”

“It was.”  Cleo paused, then held out her hand for Bette. “Dance with me?”

“Um… How will that work? It’s not like I have a body anymore.”

“We can try?”

With a shrug, Bette extended her hand and laid it atop Cleo’s.  She didn’t have any weight, but there was still a faint warmth to her ghostly touch.  Cleo pulled her in close, or at least made the gestures, unsure of how much she could really do to affect Bette’s motion.

Bette took her place in front of Cleo and rested one hand on her shoulder, and let Cleo clasp her other hand tight.  It was strange – Cleo couldn’t really tell where Bette began, so her hand hovered over where she thought Bette’s hip might be, and didn’t squeeze too hard with her other hand in case she disrupted Bette’s translucent form.  

All the same, they began to sway together, and Bette smiled.

“Not quite the same, but… it’s good.”

“Yeah.”

“I missed this,” Bette confessed softly.  “I missed you.”

“I missed you too. And I’m sorry I made you so scared to be honest with me.”

Bette raised a hand to cup Cleo’s face.  “It’s alright.  What matters is that we’re here now, together, in a way.”

“You’re right.  I love you.”

“I love you too.”

At that moment, they heard something moving in the undergrowth and turned to find Sam stumbling their way through.  When they saw their monster hunting mentors dancing together, they let out a groan.

“I’ll leave you two to it then?  For a bit?”

“Thanks, Sam.”

They waved their hand and disappeared back into the forest.

“Totally a mature eighteen-year-old,” Bette joked.

“Oh, of course. They’re probably rambling about cooties or something.”

They both giggled and continued their dance.

Some time later, still swaying to a different tune, Bette asked, “Can I kiss you?”

“Will that… can you…?”

“I don’t know.  Didn’t know if I could dance with you, though, either, so… can we try?”

Cleo smiled.  “Of course.”

It was different than before, and it was harder at first for them to find how their lips met.  But once they did, warmth flooded through each of them, and it felt just like before, when they were both alive and safe with nothing to fear and only love in their hearts.

[kellanswritingblog]

Aaaaand here’s Day 7 of @rqgfemslashweek: Goodbyes - take two!

This is the sillier of my two fics for this prompt, since I didn’t want to end the week with angst.

Sam’s mustang has been totaled.  While they mourn their lost car, Betty and Cleo make plans to purchase a new vehicle, one that can still carry Betty’s ghostly form.

Betty and Cleo stood off to the side as the tow truck began to haul up the wreckage of the Mustang, while Sam knelt in the dirt beside them, wailing.  

“My baby!”  They cried.

“It’s wrecked, Sam,” Betty said flatly.  “We should just be glad that you and Cleo aren’t ghosts now too, given how bad you crashed it.”

“But… but… but…  Can’t you magic it?  Make it better?”

“I think it’s probably for the best we let it go,” Cleo added.

“We have enough money from our last job that we can get a new car!”  Betty offered.  “Something with a radio that works!”

Sam’s lip quivered. “I guess.”  They then crawled to their feet and stood a few feet away where they could eye the tow truck operator warily and ensure that no more damage was done to their vehicle, despite the fact that it was already headed for the scrap heap.

“Do you think they’re going to be okay?”  Cleo asked Betty quietly, so that Sam couldn’t hear.

“They’ll be fine. We’ll get something shiny and new, and they’ll forget all about that old thing.”

Cleo paused. “Wait.  You could only ride in the mustang because it had been refurbished. Taken apart and put back together again.”

“What’s your point?”

“The car was basically undead.  If we get a new car, will you be able to ride in it?”

Now it was Betty’s turn to pause.  “Huh. Probably best to get a used car, then.”

“It’ll be interesting to go for a test drive if you get in the backseat and we just leave you behind,” Cleo said, and they both began to laugh.

“Well…”  Betty spun to face Cleo, a mischievous twinkle in her eye. “If I can’t ride in whatever vehicle we get next, I suppose I’ll just have to sit in your lap after all.”

“Is that so?”  Cleo smirked, and the pair leaned in to kiss one another.

Figuring out how to kiss while one partner was a ghost had been a tricky situation at first, but they perfected it with time.  However, in this instance, they didn’t get the chance to further practice their new skills, because Sam interrupted them.

“Really!?”  They yelled.  “The mustang is dead and you two are kissing?  Right now?  Right in front of my wrecked car?”

Betty gave a dramatic cough and stepped back from Cleo.  Cleo, on the other hand, pointed out, “Well, for what it’s worth, they’re taking your car away now.”

“No!”

Sam turned back to watch the tow truck pull away.  They sprinted after it, as if to say one last goodbye to their beloved, stolen car before it was turned into bits, but as it faded into the distance, they fell back to their knees and began to sob.

Betty and Cleo glanced at each other again, and then stepped over to Sam and sat beside them.  Cleo put an arm around their shoulders and pulled them into her side so that they could cry.

“I’m sorry I couldn’t magic this problem away,” Betty offered.

“It’s okay,” Sam sniffed. “It was probably time anyway.  We could only hold it together with duct tape for so long.”

“It was a lot of duct tape,” Cleo agreed, and her two companions nodded.

Betty glanced up at the sky. “We should probably get moving. You two at least will want somewhere to spend the night, and it’s going to get dark sooner rather than later. We’ll work on finding a new car tomorrow.”

“Alright, Sam?”

They nodded and allowed Cleo to help them to their feet as they wiped their tear-streaked face.  She kept her arm around their shoulders, and Betty walked close beside them.  Together, the three of them began a trek into the next phase of their monster hunting life, with one brave new mission ahead of them: to navigate a used car dealership.

[kellanswritingblog]

Day 7 of @rqgfemslashweek: Goodbyes

I had an idea for angst, but I didn’t want to end the week with that, so I wrote one sad piece and one silly piece for this prompt.  This is the sad one.

Curie knows that Eldarion has to leave, but she still believes that she’ll be back one day.

“I have to find her,” Eldarion said softly.  “I can’t let her run off again, not if she really is undead, not if she’s going to Rome.”

“I know,” Curie replied, but she held Eldarion a little closer all the same.

They had discussed Eldarion’s plans to find Sasha, but now that it was finally time for her to go and begin her search, it seemed impossible to follow through when they knew that it would be so much easier to stay wrapped up in each other’s arms. Even though Sasha had left Eldarion once before, she still felt it necessary to seek out her previous student and make sure she didn’t do anything stupid.  Or, stupider than she had already done.

“I should get going. I cannot even fathom the trouble she’s gotten herself into.”

Curie drew back from Eldarion’s embrace, but still held onto her arms as she spoke.  “Stay safe.  Please.”

“I’ll do my best.  I love you.”

“I love you too.  And I’ll miss you.  I know you have to do this, but please don’t be gone too long.”

Eldarion smiled. “I’ll try, but Sasha has always been hard to track down.”  She let out a sigh.  “I should get going.  Goodbye, my love.”

She started to pull away, but Curie held fast.  “Don’t say goodbye.  That’s a very final sentiment.  You’ll be back soon enough.”

“You’re right.  I’ll see you soon?  How about that?”

“Better.”  Curie hastily leaned forward to get in one last kiss before Eldarion left.

With that, Eldarion stepped away from Curie and began conjuring her magics so that she could traverse the planes to follow Sasha’s path.  In an instant, she was gone, and Curie was alone.

But she still had hope that Eldarion would come back to her one day.  She had no idea that a final goodbye would have been the most fitting parting.

[kellanswritingblog]

Day 5 of @rqgfemslashweek: Rare Ship

(I got so caught up in the tma finale that I forgot to post for the last couple days so we’re taking care of that now lol)

Sasha has been living and working aboard Earhart’s ship for a few months now, and it’s the safest she’s ever felt.  That safety and comfort is at its greatest, though, when she’s at Earhart’s side and they can steal a quiet moment together.

Sasha never used to like sleeping.  It was a risk to be unconscious and unaware of her surroundings when there were so many people who might take advantage to do her harm.

When she did require sleep, she slept with a dagger in one hand, and her body curled up into a tiny ball so as to avoid detection.  And if she was detected, well, the dagger would take care of that.

But on The Swift, Earhart’s airship, sleeping didn’t feel so dangerous anymore.  And sleeping next to Earhart, sharing the same bed… that almost felt like safety.  Such safety that after a while Sasha didn’t sleep with a dagger in hand anymore, though of course it was still nearby.

Waking up next to Earhart was a gift too.  Most days, Earhart was up and out before Sasha, off to deal with the ship and the crew, but Sasha loved the days when she would wake up and find her still there beside her.

And this was one such day.  Earhart blinked blearily as Sasha rolled over toward her.  As stealthy as Sasha was, Earhart could always tell when she moved around in bed, ready to comfort her if a nightmare struck.

“Good morning,” Earhart said quietly, a sleepy smile on her face.

“Morning.  How’d you sleep?”

Earhart let out a contented murmur and scooched a little closer to Sasha, their bodies brushing under the covers.

For a moment, they were content to just exist in each other’s company, and then Earhart breathed, “Sasha… I really like having you here.”

“That’s… that’s well good. Because I like being here.”

She chuckled.  “But I do want to make sure that you’re staying because you want to, not because you feel you have to.”

Sasha pulled back a little and scowled.  “Are you trying to get me to leave?”

“No!  No, not at all!”  Earhart groaned.  “I want you to stay.  But I also want to make sure that that’s what you want.  You told me about Other London and about the ring they used to keep tabs on you… and I don’t want you to ever feel like you’re trapped here.”

“Oh.”  Sasha relaxed and reached out to take hold of one of Earhart’s hands.  “I’m not trapped here.  I mean, I suppose I am in a way, since we’re flying and there’s nowhere to go besides other parts of the ship, but that’s not the point.  Even if you were horrible, you’d be nothing like Barret. And you’re not horrible.  You’re… you’re wonderful.”

“Okay, I just want to check in, you know?”  She brushed her thumb along Sasha’s hand.

“Well, you don’t have to worry.  Besides, if I didn’t want to be here, I would just disappear next time we make port. But I do want to be here. I love being here, honestly.  I love the ship, I love the crew, I love y-”

Both Earhart’s and Sasha’s eyes opened wide in surprise, then Sasha tucked her face down as she started to blush.

“I… um, I…”

Smiling, Earhart leaned over and pressed a quick kiss to Sasha’s forehead.  

“I love you too.”

Sasha peeked over at her, and, even with her face half hidden behind the covers, it was impossible to miss her smile.

They stayed like that for a while, holding onto each other, until a yell sounded outside the cabin.  

“I suppose we should probably get up and tend to our duties and all, yeah?”  Sasha said, though she made no attempt to move.

Earhart held a little tighter to Sasha’s hand.   “I think we can wait a couple more minutes.”

“Mm.  I’d like that.”

[rqgfemslashweek]

RQG Femslash Week starts tomorrow!

Use the tag #RQGFemslash21 and/or tag us in the content that you make so that we can find all of your contributions and reblog them! We also have a Twitter page, if you prefer to use that platform (and feel free to crosspost as well, using the same hashtag).

Here’s a reminder of the prompts as well:

Day 1 (March 21): Firsts Day 2 (March 22): Fears Day 3 (March 23): AU/Canon Divergent Day 4 (March 24): Hurt/comfort Day 5 (March 25): Rare ship Day 6 (March 26): RQG Specials Day 7 (March 27): Goodbyes

Rules | AO3 Collection

[rqgfemslashweek]

Day 6: RQG specials!

[ID: a minimalistic graphic reading “femslash week day 6”, with ‘femslash week’ in a bold white serif font, with ‘day 6’ in a red cursive font under it on the right of the image. the left of the image is minimalistic red lineart of a person from behind facing to the left, wearing a dress with straps that cross over their back. a small plant stretches up from their neck. the background is a pale blue.]

[rqgfemslashweek]

Day 4: Hurt/comfort!

[ID: a minimalistic graphic reading “femslash week day 4”, with ‘femslash week’ in a bold white serif font, with ‘day 4′ in a red cursive font under it on the right of the image. the left of the image is minimalistic red lineart of a person from behind facing to the left, wearing a dress with straps that cross over their back. a small plant stretches up from their neck. the background is a pale green.]