#Taako absolutely talked to Krav about how much he loves Lup and how she and Barry need to just sort it out already

[noodyl-blasstal]

@blupjeansweek day 2: Clowns

Read on A03 or below:

Barry wasn’t entirely sure why he’d gotten himself into this situation, and he wasn’t entirely sure how to get himself out either. He usually loved problem solving, absolutely loved it, but not today, not when it involved eldritch horror masquerading as children’s entertainment. Why the fuck had he come to the fucking circus?

Okay, so maybe he knew why he’d come to the circus.

Maybe it had something to do with his absolute inability to stop thinking about Lup

Maybe it was because she asked if he was going, and he said yes before he could even process the question

And maybe he didn’t back out because she’d grinned at him with such pure joy, and then suggested they may as well go together then.

There was literally no way he could say no. No jury could possibly convict.

All of that seemed like it might have been slightly daft now, though. He didn’t consider exactly how much clowns creeped him out, and that there’d be so many of them… or the fact they’d be patrolling outside. Who forgets that clowns are linked with the circus? Apparently Barry as soon as the most perfect woman ever to exist his lab partner mentions it.

Barry shuddered as he saw one out of the corner of his eye. It wasn’t logical, it wasn’t evidence based, but the discomfort working through his body was very very real. He briefly debated running, surely Lup wouldn’t actually mind? She invited him out of kindness, nothing more. Lup was unfailingly kind, she would have invited anyone, that was it.

But could he pass up a chance to spend extra time with her? Could he fuck. He’d treasured every lunchtime coffee, the post-work drinks to talk through problems. The times drinks became dinners were his favourite. They started with take away, grabbed over desks; progressed to restaurants, new ones which needed testing and established favourites; and finally to him being invited to the Tacco's cosy flat to watch her do incomprehensible magic in the kitchen while he (after the first disastrous attempt at helping) was relegated to watching from the other side of the kitchen island and definitely not staring adoringly at her. In those moments, he could almost pretend he'd been brave enough to ask her on a date, even though he knew it was just business and felt bloody awful for how much it meant to him. But, he couldn’t avoid thinking back over those meetings fondly. She was just so clever, so witty, confident in her abilities with the skill to back it up. Lup was beautiful too, he’d be hard pushed to miss it, no one should look that good in a lab coat.

He checked his watch and hoped she’d be here soon, it was already 15 minutes after they were supposed to meet, but he knew there was no chance of her being on time when Taako was joining them. He squeezed his eyes shut as another clown passed by his field of vision, there was definitely at least three of them and he wished they’d all just sod off.

“Barry?” Came a familiar voice “I know we’re late, but you didn’t need to nap about it” Lup chuckled “you know ‘Ko can’t go anywhere without looking beautiful, and boy does that take a while” she looks away from Barry to stick her tongue out at her brother, who wrinkles his nose in return.

“Of course, it was all me and definitely didn’t have anything to do with someone hoping to finally get that special someone to notice her outside of wo…” Taako’s sentence was cut off by Lup slamming her hand over his mouth with what looked like a fair bit of force. Taako’s eyes widened innocently and he fluttered his eyelashes at Lup. He must have followed the puppy dog eyes up with a lick as she ripped her hand away in disgust and wiped it on his hair as he attempted to duck out of the way. Barry was absolutely baffled, these two were like a tornado when they were together and he had long ago given up on trying to keep up. He doubted he’d ever be able to figure out what Taako meant, had Lup invited someone else from the department? She hadn't mentioned it...

Finding their seats wasn’t too difficult, although Taako had pretty much immediately vacated his, claiming to have seen ‘the most beautiful man in the world’ and aggressively sashayed towards him yelling “Don’t touch my umbrella, Barold!” over his shoulder, stopping Barry in his tracks mid way through his move to the outer seat to give Lup some space.

Lup cackled, slinging her arm over Barry’s to tug him back down, “Come back, Bear." Then shaking her head she added:

"That poor bloke doesn’t stand a chance. I’m looking forward to getting to know my new brother in law.”

Barry was a big fan of rational thought, and rationally, he thought it was quite likely he was going to drop dead. Between the clowns prowling the audience for victims and Lup mashed into his side he genuinely thought the end could be nigh, his heart shouldn’t be going this fast. She hadn’t moved her arm from his and he could smell her shampoo, it was sweet and slightly spiced and perfectly her. Her arm - pressed against his - was so soft and warm and oh god, was his arm sweating? Can arms sweat? Could she tell that his arm was sweating even though it wasn't supposed to? Okay, so he was panicking slightly, but it wasn't a bad place to be. He wished he could reciprocate her casual touches. Barry wanted to put her hand in his, their fingers were so close to each other on the arm rest. He could just move his pinkie very slightly, press it against hers. Link it to hers, make a promise to love her forever. Okay… maybe not the second one, but the first one? That wasn't weird was it? It was. It was weird. Coworkers didn't touch fingers... did they? Fuck.

Barry forgot that racing thoughts usually translated a wide eyed stare into the ether, remembering only as Lup leaned in to talk over the noise of the crowds around them “penny for ‘em?”

Barry stared back, eyes still not quite focused as he yelled at himself internally to just be normal.

"Bear, what's going on in there?" Lup knocked gently on his head.

Fuck. She could read him like a book and she knew his brain was racing and now she was right there, and looking straight into his eyes. Oh gods, he wanted to kiss her, and he felt awful for it. Why couldn’t he just appreciate that the most wonderful person he knew was part of his life instead of thinking about lunging at her when she was just showing a perfectly friendly level of care? Was he a complete creep? He was a complete creep, oh gods. He was going to have to quit his job and go to some kind of rehabilitation centre and learn how to interact with women properly.

Barry realised two things at once. He was starting to hyperventilate, and Lup was still waiting for an answer. It had definitely been longer than a reasonable amount of time to answer that question, and he absolutely didn’t know what to say. Lup was starting to look far more concerned than she had before.

“Bear, are you okay? You look like you’re going to have a panic attack, what do you need me to do?” Lup was still talking close to his ear, and still being wonderful, and smelling wonderful, and it felt so right and he needed to say something before he accidentally blurted any of this out.

“I’m-scared-of-clowns” he breathed in a rush. Yes, excellent work, it’s the truth, it’s not a lie, it’s not exactly what the problem was, but it’s a real thing that could plausibly cause him to be panicking and it wasn't about her and definitely not being in love with her, it was just a perfectly reasonable… balls. He, a 40 year old man, had just told the woman he was definitely absolutely not in love with that he was scared of clowns, like he was a child. It probably would have been less weird to just tell her he was worried that he liked the smell of her hair too much and run for it. Barry groaned.

Lup didn’t laugh. He appreciated her even more for it, she just looked worried again

“Barry, I have to ask. Why did you come to the circus? Is this like some immersion therapy thing? You really should have let me know, I could have helped, or at least done some research in advance. Are you okay?” Lup grabbed his hand and squeezed because she was wonderful and perfect and supportive and Barry thought this might be how he died. If he simply just expired now he wouldn’t have to deal with any of the consequences of the decisions that brought him here tonight.

He was opening his mouth to reply as Taako’s voice drifted past him “Finally! You two sorted it out! Now you can stop mooning and meet Kravitz. He’s handsome and perfect and chaboy is keeping him”

Lup’s mouth fell open in amazement, eyes fixed on a point behind Barry’s shoulder. He threw up a quick thanks for Taako’s ability to claim the spotlight (not even registering the mention of mooning or sorting), and turned his head to see what had caught Lup's attention. Taako was held in a bridal style carry by a ridiculously handsome black guy who was inexplicably wearing a three piece suit. Taako kicked his heels and giggled, fluttering his eyelashes up at Kravitz, whose cheeks darkened slightly under Lup and Barry’s stares. Kravitz folded himself into the seat next to Barry, Taako rescued his umbrella at the last second, but refused to unwind himself from Kravitz’s neck.

Barry saw his chance, there was never going to be a better way to get out of his head than this. He glanced at Lup, eyes wide in confusion, and then turned to hold his hand out to Kravitz.

“Hi Kravitz, I’m Barry, it’s nice to meet you” he smiled, hopefully it didn’t look as desperate as it felt. If there was ever a distraction, this was it and it was going so so well, until Lup slung herself over Barry's back to get a better line of sight.

“Goofus, what the fuck? No offence Krav, you seem delightful, it’s nice to meet you, but Taako, why on earth is this poor bloke carrying you?”

“He said his feet hurt” said Kravitz fondly to the floor.

“...And that if he picked me up and took me back to you I’d let him carry me to bed too” finished Taako, cackling as Kravitz’s head dropped.

Kravitz groaned.

“Taako! I… your sister and her boyfriend are here! You can’t say things like that! Oh gods, Lup, I’m so sorry, I wanted you to like me… he said you had to like me.” Kravitz looked up, absolute panic in his eyes.

Barry short circuited, he couldn't even feel bad for poor Kravitz in this moment, because he, a random stranger thought Barry and Lup were dating? That’s a thing people could think? He supposed she was currently draped over his back, resting her chin on his shoulder with her other arm slung round him. Gods, she was currently draped over his back resting her chin on his shoulder! She hadn’t corrected Kravitz either… Hadn’t been offended or laughed.

Was this worth the clowns?

This was worth the clowns.

[ceilingfan5]

for the au thing i don’t know if it counts but i want more facts about the teacher au

you’re INDULGING ME I KNOW THIS but im gonna LET YOU bc i CARE SO MUCH ABOUT THIS AU

LET’S GO

1. taako never intended to be a teacher, he just sort of fell into it bc of a job he had in college, and then he started subbing and he was like. oh shit. oh. oh man. i could do this. and SWITCHED HIS DEGREE AT LIKE THE LAST MINUTE AND HAD TO DO A LOT MORE SCHOOL but he was SO MUCH FUCKING HAPPIER

2. part of the reason he got into it tho is that he was considered a “challenging kid” and he has So Many complaints about his teachers throughout the years. of which there were many bc he and lup got shifted around so fucking much, which didnt help with him being an absolute little shit who just needed someone to notice he needed support

3. he had a whole ass identity crisis when he student taught, and he was so scared, like. am i gonna fuck these kids up?? am i going to ruin their tiny little futures??? he actually started in middle school and went younger when he Had To Get Out of a job and he was like fuck it it’s only one year, i can find another school when this year is over if i have to BUT HE FUCKING LOVED IT!!!!! THESE TINY PEOPLE ADORE HIM!!! AAAH

4. he loves teaching them big words he loves teaching them weird shit to say to their parents he loves wearing weird shit to school he loves getting drawings he loves watching the lightbulbs come on he loves watching them learn to read he loves completely abandoning the lesson plan and doing a whole day on a weird question he loves saying batshit nonsense and backing it up he loves getting down with them and playing aaahh

5. also in this au kravitz works at a casino!!! ive done kravitz as a high school teacher in the past but i thought this would be fun also. he has a lot of fun with it and it’s both nice and hard that he works later in the day. like in the minific he could bring taako lunch!!! but then it’s hard that sometimes taako has to go to bed without him. it’s a tradeoff. he works in guest satisfaction and gets lots of gifts from his high rollers and fucking loves to treat taako and take him out to nice restaurants and stuff!!! idk how they met in this one but it was something stupid and theyve been head over heels ever since. everyone was like. oh my god thats not going to work. but it DID so THERE!!!! krav loves to listen to taako gush or complain about his kids and his day and hes so supportive and full of love fuck i love them so much guys

PLOT TWIST! YOU THOUGHT I WAS DONE BUT IM FUCKING NOT!!!!!!! @herbgerblin mentioned taako with tiny WIZARD STUDENTS can you IMAGINE!!!! FUCK!!!! SAME AU BUT MAGICER 1. they all have tiny wizard hats and lil safety star wands and taako complains every year that that shit is on the supply list but then they show up on day one all excited and vibrating and he has to try really hard not to cry about it

2. he still teaches fucking math and reading and science and art and shit FUCK a certain particular series. education rules. also i care so fuckin much about this listen i have an original story about a teacher in a super power universe and shes a villain but you probably didnt want to hear about that youre here for taz but if you want to press that button you’re fuckin in for it pal (ailem i know you personally love that particular thing and i love you) but THIS IS ABOUT TAZ

3. GOD that would be so stressful ALSO having to teach magic?? jesus when is there time for intervention?? FUCK! but LISTEN!!!!  teaching 25 little tiny kids cantrips and shit!!! oh my god!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! draw a picture of your handsome teacher with mage hand everybody!!! no! handsomer!!!!!!!! jamie you’re doing perfectly sweetie

4. this could have gone in the top half and would have made more sense but first draft only draft amirite BUT taako’s so fucking good with the “challenging students” bc he GETS them and especially in this au tweest he’s so good at calming a kid whos like. getting overwhelmed and having like a magic storm and like other teachers might be like god i cant believe i had to deal with another tantrum today and taakos meanwhile like sat on the floor with the kid and calmed them down and reminded them he’s there and made them laugh and cool down

sidenote listen maybe they arent all wizards. or dnd wizards. sit down. let’s talk about the class system. i have a lot of thoughts actually. what do you MEAN you want me to move on

5. IMAGINE MAGIC PROJECT BASED LEARNING!!!! FUCK!!! IMAGINE LETTING THE KIDS LOOSE ON THE PLAYGROUND TO PLAY MAGIC TAG BUT HE STARTS AS IT!!!!!!!!! IMAGINE A KID WHO STRUGGLES W READING FINDING THEIR FOOTING IN MAGIC AND TAAKO BEING SO FUCKING PROUD AND USING IT AS A WINDOW TO GET THEM TO LIKE STORIES!!!!!!! IMAGINE 

okay im calm.

[penbattles]

for the hc ask: kravitz?

Headcanon A:  realistic

After S&S, Kravitz is a bit worried how Lup’s existence is going to effect their relationship.  And then he hates himself for worrying, because that’s Taako’s sister.  He heard the story.  He knows how much she means to him.  And judging by the time the uumbra staff tried to kill him, she’s not really a big fan of him.  But either way, Taako picks up on this worry and arranges for Kravitz to meet Lup, with Taako himself as a buffer, of course.  Lup comes over for dinner, and things are icy at first.  She starts to give Kravitz a shovel talk, despite Taako shaking his head “no” in warning.  Before Taako can even realize, some sort of switch flips, and suddenly Lup and Kravitz are neck deep in a heated discussion about classical composers and advanced necromancy theory.  Nobody is really sure whether or not they are fighting until Lup abruptly proclaims her love for him.  Kravitz tells her that isn’t going to save her if she keeps doing necromantic crimes.  Taako falls asleep, wondering how he ended up being the third wheel here.

Headcanon B: while it may not be realistic it is hilarious

Kravitz has a pet raven.  Kravitz also likes to turn into a raven sometimes, when he’s tired of being a person.  Taako can Absolutely Not tell the two of them apart.

Headcanon C: heart-crushing and awful, but fun to inflict on friends

Kravitz isn’t used to being human.  Rather, he isn’t used to operating on a human time scale.  Sometimes he’ll pop into the astral plane, or go out for a walk, and come back to find that it’s hours or even days later.  And now, hours and days have to mean something to him.  One day, early enough that Barry and Lup hadn’t finished their reaper training yet, he gets held up at work a little bit.  He comes home to find Taako wrapped in a blanket on the couch, eyes red from crying and opened wide in shock.  Kravitz runs over to him, worried.

“Taako, what happened?” he asks, dropping to a knee in front of the couch.  Taako pulls away, and Kravitz freezes.

“How long do you think you’ve been gone?” Taako asks, masking any emotion in his voice.

“I know I got held up a little bit,” Kravitz admits, “but that was just a couple hours!”  Taako shakes his head, heavy disappointment in his eyes.

“I haven’t heard a thing from you for two weeks, Krav,” Taako says, his voice too tired to be angry.  Kravitz hates the look that he sees in Taako’s eyes more than anything.  It’s fear.  Fear of him.  Fear that he’s going to leave again.  It is then that Kravitz realizes he’s gonna have to try a lot harder at this “being human” thing.  He doesn’t want to hurt Taako like this ever again.

Headcanon D: unrealistic, but I will disregard canon about it because I reject canon reality and substitute my own.

Kravitz’s dumb work accent is actually his real voice.  He was just nervous in front of Hot Boy (Taako) and lied and said it was a fake work accent because he was self-conscious.  He has sworn the raven queen to secrecy, and vows to take this secret to his (nonexistent) grave

Thanks!!!

[desiree-harding-fic]

A TAZ Cinderella AU

You guessed it, folks, this is the full arc of what my Cinderella!au would have been for the Adventure Zone, if I had the time/inspiration to write the whole thing. Just imagine that all of this is paced out over a bunch of chapters of very pretty words, ok? ;)

That said, enjoy! I’m actually very proud of the thing I concocted in my my head for this!

To begin, a quick run-down of the situation as it stands at the beginning of the fic: Mostly Taakitz-centric, Blupjeans as a side plot. Kravitz is the Crown Prince of Faerun, his mother the Raven Queen current ruler of the kingdom, and him as her only son. Taako and Lup’s parents are both dead, and they live with their mother’s father: their grandfather Tostaada, along with the many aunts and uncles and cousins from Tostaada’s other children. 

Tostaada has a house, several days travel (at least) from Neverwinter, a typical country home for the well-to-do. He’s somewhere between gentry and nobility, but his wealth has been in decline, as is often the case in these stories. His mistreatment of Taako and Lup comes from a disdain for their father. And it provides a convenient excuse not to pay servants.

Summary of the arc proper under the cut:

So we begin with a prologue (posted here) in which we see Kravitz and Taako, around the early teenage years (14-ish) and just get a little taste of how different their lives are. 

Chapter one (also here) kicks off with Kravitz sneaking out of the castle in the early morning for a ride, musing at how busy he is and how stressful his life is trying to be in charge of a whole kingdom, etc. Upon his return, Barry, the royal head arcanist, and Kravitz’s friend, is waiting for him, and informs him that he has a meeting scheduled this morning with the Royal Council.

The Royal Council was originally meant to be a B plot in the story, something to help drive the thing forward, in part because I couldn’t think of a reason as to why the Raven Queen, who adores her son, would force him into marriage. There had to be an outside pressure. So the council was born.

The council was created during the reign of Kravitz’s grandfather, as a way of giving the people a say and lessening the power of absolute monarchy in Faerun, which was falling out of fashion. That was the intent, but, as we find out in the first chapter, the council is now filled with noblemen who haven’t really got the people’s best interests in mind, at least in Kravitz’s humble opinion, and get a good deal of say over what he does. There was never anything enacted that would allow Kravitz to either disband the council or enact term limits, and now, if he were to put such a thing to a vote, it would never go through.

The original council consisted of: Lord Sterling (Artemis’s father), Jenkins, Gundren & Jack (both recently deceased at the opening of the story), Governor Kalen, and Davenport. I promise this will be relevant later.

So in our first chapter the Raven Queen pulls Kravitz aside after his meeting and tells him, over a very tense tea, that he is turning 25 in a couple of months, and the council, as well as foreign powers, are getting nervous that he has no martial prospects yet, and as the Raven Queen has no other relations to carry on the monarchy in Kravitz’s stead, they kind of need to get a move on. Having it so that the Royal line could die out any minute isn’t great for cultivating confidence in the people of your kingdom.

Kravitz is understandably upset, being the romantic that he is (I love him), and he wants nothing less than to be married as the result of some political power play. And yet, there is low probability, at least in his mind, that anyone that will be “suitable” according to his mother, the council, and the people both in Faerun and abroad, will be anyone that he will even remotely like. But what can he do? He agrees to begin the process of finding a spouse at this year’s Harvest Ball, which will coincide closely with his 25th birthday.

Barry is actually the one that gives Kravitz the idea of throwing the doors open to the whole of Faerun, and Kravitz, seeing it as an opportunity to meet men who aren’t stuffy nobles he hates, strikes a bargain with his mother: a masked ball, three nights long. Kravitz will not know (in theory) who is wealthy and powerful and who is not, and will be able to choose at his discretion someone that he would like to pursue. Shockingly, the Queen agrees.

*~*~*~*~*

SMASHCUT to Tostaada’s country home. We see Lup and Taako going about their morning routine, making breakfast for the family, lighting the fires in the hearth, generally working their asses off. Mid-breakfast, there’s a knock at the door, one that Taako goes to answer. (This is a no-no. He’s meant to be more of a behind-the-scenes servant, Lup being the one who is seen. She’s slightly more favored by Tostaada. Taako is hated. But Lup is in the middle of something, so...) It’s a letter from the Raven Queen, an invitation actually, to the family Taaco, to come to Neverwinter for the three-night Harvest Ball. 

The Queen’s intentions of finding her son a husband are not directly stated, but Tostaada is a shrewd, terrible old man, and it does not take him a moment to catch on. The family packs up, Taako and Lup and all, and heads to Neverwinter, the ball two weeks away.

While they’re packing, Lup pulls Taako aside and tells him her plan. They’ll be in Neverwinter for almost two weeks, ball included. And the whole kingdom will be swarming to the city for this, it will be more crowded than ever, and therefore will give them the perfect opportunity to run away from Tostaada. He’ll be so preoccupied he’ll never be able to track them down in the chaos of this event. Taako hesitates for just a second before he’s on board. They’ll run away mid-ball, when the family is gone, and by the time Tostaada realizes anything, it’ll be too late.

*~*~*~*~*

SMASHCUT back to Krav, chilling in the palace, it’s now two weeks before the ball (around the same time that Taako and co. get the letter, actually,) and preparations are well underway. During another busy day of overseeing some of the prep for the upcoming Massive Festival (TM), Kravitz runs across Captain Davenport, just returned from a long stint at sea.

They have a conversation about the state of affairs in the kingdom, Kravitz expressing his frustration at not only the ineptitude but corruption on the council, and his worries about this marital plan. He knows that Lord Sterling is going to throw his son Artemis at him relentlessly, but he hates the kid, and wants nothing to do with him, etc.

Davenport merely expresses that he has faith in Kravitz’s ability to turn it all around and make for a good king. That the recent loss of Gundren and Jack and the dragging on of the council replacing them doesn’t bode well, but that he needs to see the thing through.

He unfortunately agrees with the rest of the council, however, that Kravitz needs to be married, and soon. There’s only so long they can go dragging this out. Kravitz sees the sense in this and agrees, albeit reluctantly. At least he has the opportunity to find someone he actually likes.

Meanwhile, Taako, Lup, Tostaada and the family have arrived in Neverwinter and will be staying in a fine manor house in the upscale residential part of the city, and the family immediately sets out to find tailors and seamstresses who can get them all dressed up for the inevitable ball. The house is in shambles on the inside, the only way Tostaada could get it cheap, and Lup and Taako spend the afternoon trying to fix it up to live-able standards and clean it enough so that should the family be called upon, they’ll at least look respectable.

In the meantime, no one is home, and they begin to plan their escape.

They plan it for the third night of the ball. Tostaada will be furious if they leave sooner, being left with no servants to assist any upcoming nights. The third night, once the family leaves for the party, they’ll be in the clear. If Tostaada manages an advantageous match for any one of the cousins, he won’t bother with Taako and Lup anymore, and get better servants. It’s highly likely that in the next two weeks he’ll make several matches, so after the party is done they should be as safe as possible given their plan.

*~*~*~*~*

Everyone spends a week getting ready.

Istus, friend of the Raven Queen from a neighboring kingdom, arrives to the palace. She will be staying for the celebration, and for a while on either end. She and the Raven Queen have a conversation, in which the Raven Queen expresses her anxiety about the upcoming matchmaking process for her son. She does not want his marriage to end up like hers (loveless, purely political). She asks Istus if she will use some of her divination skills to look into the future. Istus agrees, and it is clear that she sees something very intriguing in Kravitz’s future. She does not say what it is, but she assures her Majesty not to worry.

The day of the ball arrives.

Now by some trick of fate, one of the cousins has received the wrong suit by accident, and Lup simply must go to the tailor and send it back, and retrieve the one he was supposed to receive at any cost. So Lup goes, and Taako doesn’t think much of it until she bursts back into the attic that evening, two garment bags in her hands. She says that there was a mistake, and that a noble man and woman didn’t pick up their garments for whatever reason; the week has been so chaotic anyway, and there was talk of them falling ill and being unable to attend the ball tonight, and the woman at the tailor shop felt so bad about the mistaken order she offered to alter them to fit Tostaada’s family for free, as a sort of “so sorry about the mistake” thing, and Lup said she would just take them, and isn’t it exciting Taako, we can use these and go to the ball tonight! 

Taako is reluctant to accept this plan, but Lup says they’ll only go one night, just to see the spectacle, and then they can be home for the other two and prepare to run away, and besides, they’re starting a new life and this will be a fun way to kick it off, and the outfits even come with masks, Taako, please?

Taako finally relents, and they spend the rest of the afternoon getting the cousins ready to go to the ball themselves, along with the aunts and uncles and Tostaada himself, who is in one of his moods. It’s awful, but they finally get a moment away, and they sneak up to the attic to pull out their garments...

And they get caught. Tostaada never comes upstairs, but he was calling for them, one of the cousins having forgotten a brooch or something, they weren’t answering, and when he comes upstairs and sees them, he takes the garments, drags the twins downstairs, and lets the cousins laugh at them until they’re in tears, and the family rip the dress and the suit to shreds.

The thought that they would even show themselves is so repulsive to Tostaada, and he gets angry at the presumption of it all, and he locks them downstairs in the kitchen for the duration of the evening, the door swinging shut behind him with a heavy clang.

Lup is furious, Taako more resigned, as the house quiets with the eventual departure of the family.

An hour passes with them sitting in the kitchen under the house, Lup cursing her luck. If not for her stupid idea to go, they wouldn’t be in here, locked in, and they could work on their preparations to leave two nights hence. But now they’re completely useless.

The latch on the door to the outside of the house, the small yard in the back with the meager kitchen garden, comes undone, and swings open of its own accord.

A woman is there. Or at least it looks like a woman; she is cloaked, head to toe, even her face obscured, but there’s a shimmer in the air around her that they recognize immediately as magic.

Taako and Lup have been learning magic, little by little. Taako stole a book from the village a little over a year ago, but it’s slow going, especially with Tostaada always trying to catch them doing something “indecent.”

They’ve never seen anything like this. 

The mysterious woman tells them she heard Lup’s frustrated shouting while walking by and wanted to see if they needed any help. Once they thank her for letting them out, she asks them why they haven’t decided to go to the ball; two young people like them at home on a night like this seems strange. Lup scoffs, says they thought about going for a moment, but they have nothing to wear.

Istus (for by now the reader surely knows it is Istus) cocks her head and says that that won’t do, will it? And raises her hands.

And in a moment their clothes are transformed, and Lup is dressed in a gorgeous gown in reds and golds, and feathered mask is on her face, and Taako’s in a finely made suit, his mask vaguely rodential. And the woman says that now they are well-suited for a ball. Taako and Lup are just gaping at her, but she shoos them along. Go, she says, and Taako feels a peculiar prickle up his spine when she tells them, when she tells him, it feels like, to amuse himself, to have a good time, to meet new people.

She warns them that while her magic is powerful, which is evident, it is sensitive to time. Wherever they are, at the stroke of midnight, the magic will fade, and their appearances will revert to what they were before.

Lup and Taako, wanting to go only for a few laughs and to spite Tostaada, say that this is more than enough time.

And they go.

When they arrive at the palace, it’s positively swarmed with people. They agree to meet by the front doors at a half hour before midnight, giving them plenty of time to get out without being seen.

And they go in.

They’re being jostled on all sides, and well, as much as they’d like to stick together it doesn’t really work out that way, and before he knows it, Taako is in the midst of a ballroom looking for Lup, and following the flow of the crowd - 

And suddenly he’s face-to-face (or, well, mask-to-mask) with a very handsomely dressed man with a skull for a face.

A skull mask, to be exact, all silver and gold filigree and done up with rubies and diamonds, and his suit is fine, dark velvet in rich blacks and deep, deep reds, and he bows and Taako does, too, because he feels as though it’s the thing to do, and when the man straightens up he and Taako trade the typical small-talk befitting a prince and his guest (because, Taako realizes, with as many people seem to be looking at them, that is surely who this must be), and Taako says something witty that makes Kravitz laugh which I will not write here, because this is a summary, which means all I have to do is say when the jokes happen; I don’t actually have to write them.

Long story short, Kravitz pulls off his mask, and he asks Taako to dance.

The anonymity Kravitz was hoping to be afforded by throwing a masked ball has not really panned out. Everyone can tell exactly which mask the prince is behind, and once the receiving line began to form, there was really nothing for it. He likes the Mongoose-masked stranger, though, and would very much like to know him better. And so what if he’s abandoning the rest of the line? He’s the prince, thank you very much, and he can do what he likes.

Taako is sold the moment the prince pulls his mask off, because the prince is hot, and Taako feels rather gorgeous himself, and maybe this is the first night in a while that he’s had any kind of serious fun and he’s feeling a bit reckless, so he pulls his mask off too and they have a dance.

Or two.

Or three, talking all the while.

After the third, the prince bows respectfully and says he must see to his other guests, but that he hopes to see Taako again, and Taako, maybe just a little flustered, wanders over to the food.

Meanwhile, Lup entered the ballroom, having gotten a bit lost on the way in, shortly after the fateful meeting itself and what does she see but her brother, unmasked, dancing with a man who is most unmistakably the prince.

Which is really just perfect, isn’t it?

She pouts for a minute because one beautiful elf will hardly draw any attention in this crowd, except Taako’s dancing with the crown prince, so every eye in the assembly is fixed upon him, and seeing an identical twin will definitely lead to some word getting around. So Lup is confined to remaining masked for the duration of the ball.

Which isn’t so bad, since she was expecting that, after all, but neither is she looking forward to it.

She skirts the edge of the ballroom, finds her way to some refreshment tables, and she’s lucky her mask leaves most of the bottom half of her face free as she nibbles on the hors d’oeuvres set out and generally enjoys the spectacle. She is propositioned to dance a few times but after the prince removes his mask a large portion of the assembly does as well, and Lup rather sticks out for keeping hers on.

She isn’t given much more attention, then, as all of the other people around seem to write off the mask as a wish to stay hidden and therefore ignored, and while they aren’t wrong, Lup isn’t enjoying the ball half as much as she thought.

And then things go from bad to worse.

Some moron completely knocks into her and sends her drink, a strong red wine, all down the front of her, granted, magical and temporary, but very nice dress.

Lup’s going to be mad, but the man is so sweet about it, stammering his apologies, and completely red in the face and, frankly, such a dork that she really can’t be mad, and he does about some ridiculous business about trying mop up the wine and it’s completely hopeless, and Lup is bored - 

So she tries casting prestidigitation on the stain.

And, somewhat to her surprise, it works.

This catches the man’s attention, who immediately straightens up and starts asking her questions about where she’s learned magic, and what other spells she knows, and what her name is. Lup, in a moment of impulse, introduces herself as Lady Lulu, which she cringes at immediately but sticks with. And the man is nice to talk to, and interesting, and apparently an expert in the arcane, which Lup is thrilled about. Out of all these people she ran into someone actually interesting.

At one point, she invites the man to dance, but he refuses, a bit awkwardly. He says he’s not very coordinated, but he wouldn’t mind taking a walk, if she wouldn’t mind either? Lup is going to say yes, but upon glancing at the clock, sees that it’s almost eleven-thirty, and tells him she has to go.

Taako, meanwhile, has danced with Kravitz twice more, and chatted a bit, and when he tries to extricate himself from his Highness’s presence Kravitz seems genuinely disappointed to see him go, and asks him if he’ll be back tomorrow night.

Taako, suddenly overcome with something that makes him want to make this man smile, says yes.

And then he goes to meet Lup at the front.

They head home, making their way through the streets which are not quite as crowded as the palace was, but are still significantly busy, as those who felt they would not be at home in the palace have taken to celebrating the harvest ball in the streets. Lup and Taako make it home unnoticed, and they chat a little bit about what they saw and what they did, and when Lup teases Taako about the prince, he’s unusually quiet. This worries Lup a bit, but she doesn’t press further.

Their clothes transform when they’re about 3/4 of the way home. When they arrive, they figure they have a few hours until the family gets home to begin making preparations for their escape. Around three, they shut themselves back up in the kitchen. Lup manages to find, from the outside, a way around the locked door that i haven’t decided on yet, because this is just a summary.

Wash, rinse, repeat. The twins are on their best behavior the next day as Tostaada and co. sleep through the morning, having been up late the night before, and while no one comes to call that afternoon, Tostaada still has high hopes for a match. Lup and Taako are locked in the kitchen, manage to get out -

And now, Taako has been nervous all day having promised the prince he would be back, and surprisingly, quite wanting to see him again. He’s pacing the floor when Istus arrives, transforms their clothes, and sends them off.

Lup is more than a little skeptical about this magic woman, but Taako wants to go, so she goes, and tries to put the bizarre-ness of it out of her mind.

Taako goes to the ball, meets up with Kravitz, and this time Kravitz doesn’t leave his side all night. Lup wanders around, still masked, until she runs into Barry again (not literally this time) and makes good on that walk in the gardens he asked her for last night. They both make it to the gates again by eleven-thirty, and make it home.

This night, however, something tips Tostaada off. Maybe it’s the way Taako moves, or maybe it’s his own paranoia, but something happens at the ball that makes him suspicious. I will not hash out what it is at this time because, again: Summary.

Wash, rinse, repeat.

Istus, on the third night, gives Taako his most fabulous ensemble yet, a beautiful thing in deep blue and silver and gives him jewelry set in sapphires and, you guessed it, pink tourmaline (because I’m predictable). Including, most importantly, a pair of bracelets. As Lup is locking up the kitchen to go, Istus pulls Taako aside and hands him the bracelets, and tells him that they will not dissipate at midnight. She hints vaguely at Taako and Lup’s plans to go away after the ball is over, tells him to consider the bracelets a gift. They are two of a kind, she tells him, and perhaps they will fetch a price.

Taako does not know why this woman knows so much about their life, but he’s eager to get to the party, accepts the bracelets, and before he can ask her more, she’s gone.

They head out to the ball for the third time.

It is this night that we get the majority of the material between Taako and Kravitz. Kravitz, this time, is waiting right inside the door to the ballroom, and when Taako arrives he is immediately swept up by the prince into a dance. Although, after a few hours of dancing and eating and generally enjoying themselves in the ballroom, they take a walk in the gardens.

Meanwhile, it is at this time that we get the scene where Barry has been chatting Lup up, quite obliviously, and finally he asks her if she’d like to see his lab, unable to take it anymore, he’s so excited that someone’s interested in his work. Lup, of course, thinks it’s a come-on, as discussed here, but upon going up to Barry’s tower lab she realizes that he actually, genuinely was inviting her up to look at his research which is just... too cute.

Meanwhile, Taako and Kravitz are taking a stroll through the extensive terraced palace gardens, talking all the while and the both of them are just... enamored. Taako feels beautiful and important for the first time in a long time and it’s wonderful. Kravitz has found someone interesting and gorgeous and wonderful, and it’s just... too much. It’s hard to write in short form here that they’re in love, but they like... are. Just trust me. Not fully, because it’s only been a few meetings, a few nights, but there’s something there. There’s a pull that they haven’t felt before, and feels somehow beyond them.

They wander, and the gardens are beautiful, and the moonlight is beautiful, and they end up on a sort of terrace, secluded by trees, and the sea is down below them and they dance again, just the two of them, and then there’s kissing and it’s all very romantic, I promise. There’s a scene from it here.

Then the clock strikes midnight.

And Taako panics.

The time got away from him, he got distracted, and he tries to run, but Kravitz catches his hand and he’s begging Taako to stay but Taako can’t, because Kravitz doesn’t know what’s going on here.

He thinks fast. He unclasps one of the bracelets and places it in Kravitz’s hand and says so fast that if Kravitz wants to see him again he can look for him and Taako will have the other bracelet ok bye and then he runs. 

He barely makes it out of the palace in time.

But of course, by this time, Lup is not at the front gates. They planned out a fallback location, less conspicuous, if one of them got held up, and Taako is already late, and he gets there as fast as he can, and Lup is pissed.

(she’s mostly just worried).

She kind of goes at him for being late but Taako just says he lost track of time, and whatever that feeling is in his voice makes Lup back off. She’s never heard Taako sound like that before. She lets it go, but she’s more worried than before.

They make their way home, ready to pick up their packs and run like they were planning. But they open the door to the kitchen, and there’s a thud, and a candle lights, and Tostaada is there, the contents of their packs spread out before him, and absolute fury in his eyes.

It’s awful. After his suspicion, he saw Taako enter the ball tonight. And knew it was him. And he was furious. He came home, headed them off, and yells at them something fierce, locking them in separate closets to deal with them, because they can’t be trusted to be together, they’ll scheme. (Some of the cousins, by the way, are here for this, because fuck the cousins). 

They try desperately to break out. Banging on the door, trying to bust out the doorknob, to cast something on the door to unlock it, but they’ve been going three days only getting a couple hours of sleep a night. It finally hits them how exhausted they are. After a while, there’s nothing they can do.

Now you may say to yourself “this is awfully convenient.” And you would be right. But it’s also a fairytale, and this is a summary of a fairytale, so there.

Tostaada, because he fucking sucks, finds some way to separate the twins. Probably something along the lines of dragging Taako out of his “cell” and being like guess what I’ve always hated you and I’m a real bastard so you’re working for this shady caravan now, have a good time. Taako is Not Down to be separated from his sister but he’s also like hey fuck you to Tostaada and is going to dip from that caravan in about 30 seconds so he’s like yeah have a nice life, too, dickweed.

He slips away from the caravan in like... a day. Fuck those guys. He’s gonna go back and get Lup.

And just a bit later, Lup gets let out of the closet, and finds out that Taako’s gone. And she goes fucking berserk. She casts her first fireball (yes I know that’s now how it works in DnD but shhhhhhh it’s fine).

She burns Tostaada’s fucking dumbass city house to the ground. And Tostaada and the cousins are panicking but Lup is honestly like fuck the cousins, and she slips away in the chaos. Fuck Tostaada. Fuck the family. Lup’s going to go find her fucking brother.

*~*~*~*~*

We haven’t checked in on Kravitz in a hot minute, but he’s been completely smitten with Taako from the moment he met him, and has been saying as much to Mama Bird herself, the Raven Queen, who has been... a little less than stoked. She is skeptical because this isn’t going exactly as planned, and on top of that, Kravitz hasn’t even learned this man’s name. He’s an absolute enigma, and Raven worries not only that this man will potentially not be a good asset to the kingdom, but he also might not turn up and completely break Kravitz’s heart.

But Kravitz stands firm. The Queen said he could make his choice, well, he’s going to. He’s going to go after this guy.

...Or so he thinks. See, the Royal Council, as in all things, gets their say. And they’re not happy with this. Generally disapproving when Kravitz tries to make his own decisions, they say absolutely not to his wish to search for Taako. Raven tries to help by talking them down from letting them handle the search and keeping Kravitz in the capital to letting Kravitz go himself but only giving him a few months time. If he hasn’t found Taako by then, he’s going to have to call off the search altogether and look for another match.

It’s not good, but it’s something. Kravitz takes his bracelet and begins seeking out every elf in the land who even vaguely matches Taako’s description.

*~*~*~*~*

The elf in question is, at this point, on his own. Meeting up with your sister when you have no idea where she is and she has no idea where you are, and you’re running back and forth and missing each other, well. It’s difficult. 

It takes them a little while to get back together, and I’m sure there are plenty of minor trials and tribulations along the way. I won’t go into them all here, because this is a summary.

*~*~*~*~*

Kravitz is on the move, looking for Taako. He searches and searches and comes up with nothing. It’s been two months. It’s almost the height of winter. He’s running out of his allotted time for his search. And that’s when it happens.

He’s riding through this one town, a ways from the capital, when he sees, there, out of the corner of his eye, a flash of silver and blue and maybe some pink, and he turns his head, and there’s the bracelet. The one Taako gave him.

But it’s not on Taako’s wrist.

Kravitz calls for the guards travelling with him and they stop the woman and they question her as to where she got that bracelet. She says that she bought it off a travelling salesman, and seems rather embarrassed about it. She’s reluctant to give it up, having bought it fair and square, but Kravitz pays her, and gets it back.

Kravitz is, of course, heartbroken. Taako said he would have the other bracelet. He told Kravitz to look for him. He said to look for him. If he gave it up, if he sold it, does it mean he doesn’t want to see Kravitz again after all?

Kravitz wants answers for a minute. But then he listens to reason. Or so he thinks. Discouraged, he returns to the capital, as per Lord Sterling’s suggestion.

Many people and things are trying to keep these two apart. It is at this point that these forces begin to win.

So he goes home, in time for the first snow to cover Neverwinter.

*~*~*~*~*

What Taako and Lup are up to in the meantime:

It’s pretty close to canon in that they mostly hop from job to job, and caravan to caravan, taking odd jobs and cooking and making their way. And it’s hard. It’s really hard. But something about it is good. This is the first time they’ve had, maybe in their whole lives, to just be in charge of themselves. They’re deciding their own destiny now.

Lup can see that Taako is different. Something has changed. The news that the prince is looking for him isn’t a secret at all, so she keeps a careful eye on him for how he feels about that. She brings it up a few times that maybe they could come forward in their own way, maybe let people know that he’s out there, but Taako keeps shutting her down before she can really talk about it.

As for Taako, he’s more than thrilled to finally be free of Tostaada, and to have his sister back after a few months of absence. But the whole thing at the ball and with Kravitz is... weighing on his mind.

I should explain the bracelet fiasco.

See, Taako and Lup returned from the ball, and the whole thing with Tostaada went down. Of course, while he was deciding what to do with Taako he confiscated the bracelet, and sold it off a bit later for whatever he could get. This is how it was able to travel so far from where Taako actually is; the jewelry seller went one way, Taako another, and Tostaada and the family, when they finally left Neverwinter, a third.

This is all running through Taako’s mind of course. It would be nice for Kravitz to find him, sure, but Taako was the one who set up the system of verification through the bracelet. Without it, what credibility does he have? And sure, maybe Kravitz will recognize him, but what if he doesn’t? It was dark, and it was only a few nights, and - 

Anyway, Taako’s not going to worry about it. He’s fine, really, and it was only a few nights anyway, and what does he care about the dumb old prince. It’s not like Kravitz said he wanted to marry him. He just said he wanted to see him again. What the hell does that mean? And it’s not like Taako was the only one he spent time with at the ball.

Basically our sweet boy is snackin’ on a big slice of denial pie and it’s very sad.

Taako is saying that he doesn’t care whether he sees Kravitz again or not, but Lup can tell something is wrong. She suggests that they stick around in Faerun, work for the winter, and come spring, they’ll head out. They’ll hitch their way with the caravans, and work their way over the border. New country, new life. Leave all that Tostaada shit and everything behind.

Taako’s on board. They find themselves a job cooking and occasionally tending the bar at an inn, not a gross one but not the fanciest either. They’re going to work up some money, and they’re going to hit the road.

But back to Kravitz.

*~*~*~*~*

Kravitz is back home at the palace in Neverwinter. The first snow on the not-very-aptly named city makes traveling difficult. If Kravitz hadn’t already given up the dream of Taako, it would well and truly be impossible to find him now. No one in their right mind would send a search party out in the winter months.

So he’s essentially on house arrest.

And so begins the parade of potential partners. Everyone knows about the ball. Everyone knows now that the plan of having the prince find a partner there was a colossal failure. Every young and eligible nobleman in the capital who is even remotely interested in men gets thrown at this boy. Artemis Sterling most of all, a spoiled brat of a boy, who, when he’s not being absolutely appalling to people is boring them to death.

Kravitz is fucking miserable.

Does this make him think of Taako? Yes. Does he miss him? Absolutely. Does it only twist the knife of heartbreak in this boy who thought he had found someone good and then that person gave him up? 100 percent.

Kravitz is ready to jump off the cliffs out back the palace into the Stillwater Sea and swim to a new country when the word from Raven’s Roost comes.

Rebellion! Against Kalen, of all people! How could it be?

(Kravitz has hated Kalen for a while, but this certainly is a pickle).

Kalen is ousted, arrives in Neverwinter half-frozen and fuming, a few cronies on his tail, and chaos in the palace ensues. Who to believe? Kalen, who claims he has been unfairly attacked, or the people, claiming Kalen’s long-term abuse.

It all shakes out somehow. This is a summary, though, so I don’t have to say. Julia does something badass. Also she’s not dead. She and Magnus show up in the capital and there’s the whole them vs Kalen before the Raven Queen fiasco and finally she chooses the good people as the correct ones and Kalen is thrown in prison or banished or something lol idk.

And now there are... 3 positions on the royal council empty and it is essentially non-functioning. The kingdom is in governmental crisis. Magnus and Julia are at the palace. This whole rebellion/trial thing has taken most of the winter months.

Barry and Magnus become fast friends, which of course puts Magnus into Kravitz’s orbit more than the Kalen ordeal already has. And they begin talking. And at the prompting of Magnus and Julia being so in love, Taako of course comes up.

Magnus is all omg wow buddy that’s true love u gotta pursue that, and Kravitz is like ok but also consider he probably doesn’t even like me, and also it’s impossible, and also I can’t. To which Magnus says umm how do you know, and also bullshit, and also why not?

And why not indeed?

Well, Barry says, perhaps because the government is in shambles and to abandon everything now would almost certainly trigger all kinds of issues amongst the aristocracy, upon whom your hold is currently tenuous at best.

Kravitz says >:((

And then along comes Merle.

Merle comes moseying up the palace one day like hey guys how’s it goin’ I’m Merle, and the [PLACE WHERE GUNDREN WAS FROM] sent me here to be Gundren’s replacement on the Royal Council, after all I am his cousin, don’t’cha know, and sorry it took us so long, we had some issues to work through. He does not explain what these were, nor does he have to, for this is a summary.

Merle’s addition is a real gamechanger, because not only is he miraculously able to neutralize the more antagonistic personalities on the council (usually through saying something Kravitz can’t decide is crazy or profound), but also he’s a big advocate for let’s get things up and running again, starting with just replacing Kalen with one of these two nice people who Raven’s Roost seems to have elected to represent them.

Magnus goes “oh well I don’t know this is a lot of responsibility-” and before he’s even done talking Julia’s like “I’ll fuckin’ do it.”

This, of course, gets the council running, and, importantly to our plot, creates a majority of people who Want kravitz to Go After A Boy. They work on cleaning up the mess in Raven’s Roost, finally find a replacement for Jack (it’s Cassidy, also by election, which is a shiny new toy for these people) and they iron all of it out by the time Spring has sprung.

Kravitz says now can I go Find A Boy PLEEEAAAAASE I did the governing thing and everything. And most people’s reactions are omg I can’t believe you’re still talking about that but Fine. Take some friends. Kravitz takes Barry and Magnus and (mumble mumble some others idk like avi or someone don’t @ me) and is like BYE MY CONFIDENCE IS RESTORED AND I’M GONNA FIND A BOY.

*~*~*~*~*

So Spring Has Sprung. 

Which means Lup and Taako are back on the move. Continuing their slow journey out of Faerun, working on their way (it’s nice to have money saved up, they find, but it’s not A Lot, and they don’t want to totally deplete it.) They usually stop for a week in a town, do some odd jobs, travel, stop for a week. It’s nice. 

But they’re on the way OUT OF THE COUNTRY *cue dramatic music*

Will Kravitz Reach Them In Time? If he does, will Taako even Want To Go Back? All these questions and more exist at this point in the narrative.

*~*~*~*~*

Kravitz follows the lead of the bracelet. He does not stop for a week in towns. In fact, he’s pushing pretty hard. He tracks down the woman who points him to the seller who points him to Another travelling seller who points him to a jeweler in town who looks at the bracelet and says oh yeah, I got that from Old Man Tostaada, outside of town, he’s a proud type, but you should ask him.

Well. Kravitz certainly does.

In the nearly six months since Taako and Lup slunk and exploded out of his life, respectively, Tostaada has become an even crochetier, nastier, meaner old man than ever. He has no servants now. The cousins have to do chores, oh the horror. He’s propping his appearance of nobility up on pride alone. The house is in Shambles. It’s a whole Thing™️.

But one fateful springy day, one of the cousins looks out the window…

And Sees An Entire Royal-insignia’d Party Riding Up The Lane. 

And promptly Panics.

Well Kravitz and co are ushered into the house with all kinds of Ceremony, and Tostaada is acting very proud, and Kravitz says excuse me sir, I was wondering if you might remember being in possession of this bracelet.

This is Bad News to Tostaada. 

I may recall, sir, he says. 

There’s a terribly polite and tense conversation after that. Tostaada refuses to say where he got the bracelet, even to royalty, being as old and spiteful as he is, and Kravitz is just about to threaten him with something terrible when one of the cousins breaks, and spills the whole story tearfully, about Taako and Lup and how they were treated and where Tostaada got the bracelet and “we didn’t know you wanted it, we didn’t know it was important, we swear,” and the only thing that keeps Kravitz from Severely Punishing them is that he refuses to waste any time getting to Taako, who he’s very keen to find now. Tostaada has no idea where Taako and Lup are now, though, so he wasn’t helpful in that sense. Only now Kravitz knows that they’ve Been The Fuck Through It, and that Taako didn’t give up the bracelet of his own accord, and so it’s possible that The Boy Still Likes Him. 

And with renewed energy, off they go.

Tostaada gets stripped of whatever title he has left, or something, because FUCK him.

Kravitz and the gang are putting out the word that hey, we’re still looking for this elf, if anyone’s seen him, that would be great.

The thing is, this time, they’re getting leads, on account of Lup and Taako sticking around in places long enough to make a friend or two.

*~*~*~*~*

It’s later, and almost Summertime, baby, when Lup and Taako finally hear the news. 

The prince is still looking for Taako? Damn. Boy’s serious.

Lup watches Taako’s face carefully when they hear this news. They’re leaving town. They only have one more before they reach the border and slip away. Lup says hey. Are you sure you don’t wanna come forward and say something?

Taako’s like no of course we shouldn’t do that don’t be silly it’s FINE. (It’s not fine, Lup can tell, but she’s not gonna push. This is Taako’s decision to make. They’re gonna make a fresh start in a new place. It’ll be great. 

They start hiking to the next town, hobbit style. They make it out into ye woods and find a nice spot to settle down and camp. Make up a fire, get cozy, cook a little dinner, the whole shindig. They settle down to sleep. 

Taako wakes up. In the middle of the night. The full moon is shining brightly down into the clearing they’re sleeping in and the fire is no longer the softly smoldering embers it was when he fell asleep. It’s nice crackling along. And sitting there, tending it, is a lady. 

Lady is the only way to describe her. She’s in a gown of silvery thread with silvery hair tumbling down her back. She asks Taako if he’d like some tea. He can’t tell if the light in the clearing is from the moon, or the fire, or just from her. She speaks with a voice that just sounds so familiar, but that he doesn’t quite place. 

She hands Taako a cup of tea. It’s floral and fragrant and lovely. She asks him what he’s running from. He says she sounds awfully condescending talking like that, and if she knew what he’d been through she wouldn’t act like leaving it all behind was such a bad decision. She says she never said it was a bad decision, she just wonders how much he’s thought about it, is all. There’s a quiet moment, as she sips her tea. She says, quietly, that perhaps Taako ought to be careful, not to run too far too fast. 

And taako wakes up again. There’s a teacup sitting beside him. Empty. Clean. There’s no sign that there was any visitor in the night. 

To Lup, Taako is acting weird the next day. He seems jumpy. He seems distant. She keeps worrying they’re gonna get jumped on the road, from the way he’s not paying attention to his surroundings. He’s in his head, even more than usual. But they manage to arrive to the next town without incident. 

And Taako’s weird over the next few days. And Lup suggests on the fourth that they get a move on. There’s a caravan headed across the border tomorrow, we can go with them. 

Taako looks at the drink in his hand for a long moment, not there with her, and she’s about to ask again when he says “maybe just a few more days.” 

Taako doesn’t ask her for much. Taako seems very serious, and it’s kind of scaring Lup. But she agrees. A few more days is fine. Then they’ll go.

And a few days pass. And Taako’s weird. He keeps looking around corners like he’s expecting something to jump out from around them. He keeps looking down the street like he expects something to come barreling into town. But nothing ever seems to. 

Come on, Taako, Lup says, three days later, while Taako’s dropped over a cup of wine in the local inn. Tomorrow some more people are leaving, mid-afternoon, they said, let’s go. Just over those hills and we can start everything over, make a name for ourselves. What do you say?

And Taako agrees. 

They go to bed.

And, in the bright-mid morning the next day, Kravitz and the gang come riding into town, Raven Queen standard flying high over their heads, dressed in shining silver on black. Lup’s out on the street, collecting some last-minute supplies when she sees them. 

Holy shit, Lup says. 

She recognizes the Prince. She recognizes BARRY. And after her moment of gawking in surprise, the prince glances her way, and does a frankly comedic wide-eyed double take. 

She does, after all, have Taako’s face.

He hops off his horse and very politely comes over and introduces himself, and identifies her by name (he met her grandfather) and asks, very kindly, if she might know where he can find her brother.

Lup does some quick mental calculus and says “yeah, I can show you where he is.”

That scene can be found HERE. (I truly can’t shortly summarize this one better than I wrote it so yikes secret few thousand words nested in this already monstrous summary, I’m sorry but not really I am sorry that it switches tense like three times, I do not have the energy to correct it).

Needless to say, they are reunited.

But it’s a lot to put on someone, the entire “come home with me I think you’re the love of my life even though we kind of only know each other a little, also if you say yes you might be responsible for governing a whole people” so Taako needs some time to think.

Kravitz leaves him some. 

And then Taako and Lup have a long conversation, where Taako makes lots of excuses as to why he shouldn’t go with Kravitz, and Lup listens very patiently and nods and hums along, and then finally asks him if he thinks Kravitz will make him happy. 

This stumps Taako for a good long time, standing stock still, looking terrified, before he nods. 

Well, Lup says, I think you know what you need to do. 

And Taako goes, the evening, as it’s getting late (which is about when he and Lup finished hashing it all out and he got his courage up) to Kravitz’s room in the inn, and Kravitz’s guards let him in, and oh. Oh Kravitz looks lovely, standing there, dressed down, comfortable in his own space. And Kravitz gets up and looks at Taako with wide eyes and Taako says, “I thought about what you said.”

“Yes?” Kravitz says. He might be crying. Taako can’t tell. He looks terrified.

“I think…” Taako says. “I think I want to go with you.”

Kravitz becomes a human embodiment of heart eyes and says “really?”

And Taako says oh my god yes but you have to not be weird.

“I’m not being weird,” says Kravitz, still heart eyes-ing, “I’m so not weird. I’m so normal, see?”

And they KISS.

*~*~*~*~*

Everybody packs up the next morning to head on their merry way home. Kravitz is over the moon. Taako is, kind of, too, but is trying to be chill about it. Lup tells Barry as they leave that she was the one he was hanging with at the ball that one time, good to see him again, and Barry becomes human heart eyes for approximately four seconds before he reigns it in and he’s like oh cool nice to officially meet you, and the two of them spend the rest of the trip circling each other trying not to act in love because like there’s a lot going on and Taako needs lup and all, and Taako and Kravitz are very amused by this. 

Taako and Magnus become fast friends. And, he and Kravitz get time to properly get to know each other during all that travel together, and the scary thing is they fit better than they ever thought they would, they really do. Taako likes the boy more by the day. Kravitz is so smitten it’s revolting. 

When they get back to Neverwinter, there’s a fair bit of fanfare and the Raven Queen makes a big stink about Kravitz shirking his duties and being irresponsible and whatnot, but he can tell she’s secretly pleased. She comes to like Taako very much. 

And well… you know what’s next. After a bit, Taako and Kravitz get married.

*~*~*~*~*

EPILOGUE:

The marriage of King Kravitz to Prince Taako is known as one of the more fortuitous in the history of the nation.

Prince Taako, after his history as one of the working common folk of Faerun, went on to use his new seat on the royal council to champion reforms that changed the lives of working people everywhere. The laws he helped draft that established basic working condition requirements for those in domestic services helped launch a new era of equal pay and treatment for the working classes of Faerun, and a culling of the power of the wealthy. 

He helped establish a new nation-wide system of government, based on regional elections, and with King Kravitz, gradually placed more political power in the hands of the people. The minimum requirements for the royal council to balance the number of aristocratic members with those without titles stands to this day.

Prince Taako was known, also, for his aptitude for the arcane. Though never did he manage to surpass his sister and brother-in-law in his lifetime, he is revered as one of the more powerful and skilled mages in Faerun’s history. Though perhaps more famous is his legacy as a great instructor in the arcane sciences, known especially for training Grand Archmage Angus McDonald in his early years. 

Though perhaps chief among his achievements was his role in the war against the Hunger in the twenty-third year of King Kravitz’s reign. He was among those who formulated the plan to infiltrate the Hunger’s forces and carry out the assassination of John the Devourer. And when King Kravitz was injured in the final battle against the Hunger’s armies, it was Prince Taako who held the line, and was unmoved in the face of their power. For this, he became known during his reign as Prince Taako the Steadfast, though over the years his long-time connection with Lady Istus was cited as evidence to his improbable marriage and ascension to the throne being an act of Providence, and in many secret circles he was referred to as Prince Taako the Blessed.

Upon his abdication from the throne in the thirtieth year of his reign, Prince Taako and King Kravitz were succeeded by the former’s sister, Queen Lup and Prince Barold, whose daughter, Queen Lilliana, finally dissolved the monarchy in the twelfth year of her reign, thus ending the Faerun’s royal line forever, and ushering the world into a new era of peace and equality. 

From:  Faerun: A History by Lucretia Moreau, published 538 T.E.

*~*~*~*~*

BIG Thank you to @fandomsnstuff and @her-biness who helped me with this for a Long Time. The little cameo of the blupjeans baby belongs to @lillianabluejeans, and the last name from Lucretia is taken from one of my favorite fics, Bureau of Badass on ao3, by Chemicallywrit and miceenscene.

Bonus points will be given to those who notice the 500 references in here to various adaptations of the cinderella story :)

[spenceraugust]

TAZNC Day 1

@taznovembercelebration

Selected prompt is italicized: Fake dating/ domesticity

See the month’s prompt list: https://bit.ly/2TUfDLC

Read it on AO3: https://bit.ly/38cjqMO

It had been two weeks. And- okay, when you really think about it, sure, that's not that long. Just enough to start missing someone, but not really enough to feel ready to head back to school.

Holiday break was over, and that meant two things. Midterms and Taako.

Taako's family lived far away- according to the blonde, they were from a small town called New Elfington on the West Coast. He hadn't been home in years, and no matter what he said, Kravitz knew he missed his sister. She and her husband had picked up a kid since the last time Taako had been home. Their grandfather had tested positive for Alzheimer's after  wandering into the woods and getting lost.  His cousin had opened a woodworking shop and got engaged.

He'd missed a lot in the five years since he'd been back, so Kravitz had been as understanding as possible when Taako broke the news.

He was understanding. That didn't mean he expected it.

"I think I'm going to go home this year," he said, using his French fry to push a chicken nugget around. The cafeteria food was garbage, and Taako hated it, and no matter how many times Kravitz said "hey, aren't you in culinary school? Maybe you should pack lunch."  His companion seemed rather insistent on partaking in the distribution of culinary war crimes.

(Kravitz was pretty sure he just liked to complain.)

"Oh?" Kravitz glanced up from his salad. "I- what about our mall date next week to last minute gift shop?"

"Sorry bones," He smiled sadly, "someone else will have to help me deal with the consequences of my actions."

"I mean- good luck, I guess-" Kravitz was sputtering, so he took a sip of his water. "I just- are you going to take a cab? I can't imagine that'll be cheap."

"Lup's got bridesmaids business at Julia's, and that's only an hour and a half away. We're going to pit stop it. They figured out something, I guess- Barry will drive me home and Lup will drive me back," He finally looked up from his lunch, "so you're in charge of holding down the fort until I get back. Promise to not clean my half of the room?"

"Taako," Kravitz placed his hand gently on the back of his best friend's. "I'm absolutely going to clean your half of the room."

Taako was, objectively, a bad roommate. He listened to music loudly, never cleaned his half of the room, had a tendency to invite people over and not warn him, and always seemed to go missing when dorm inspections were supposed to happen.

Kravitz still wasn't sure when he started developing a crush on him, but it was a secret he would take to his grave. He didn't spend the past three years becoming someone Taako trusted by saying every little thing that came to mind.

He was still ecstatic for Taako to come home. They'd never been apart for more than a couple of days. Two weeks was torture, especially when it was filled with aggressive smothering from his mothers. It was good to be back.

💕 Taako 💕 Be home in five, handsome!

His phone buzzed in his hand, and Kravitz nearly dropped it. He'd been sitting in his coat on his bed for the better part of an hour, debating whether or not he should go and wait outside. Was that weird? It felt a little weird. But it was Taako, and it had been two weeks-

Fuck it. He could play it off like he was going to get a coffee. Maybe he'd even get the chance to meet the mysterious sister he'd heard about for years.

And, as his luck would have it, apparently "be home in five" meant "I'm here, but it'll take a couple minutes to take stuff out of the trunk of my brother-in-law's beat up Subaru" (which, by the way, fully lived up to Taako's description).

"Oh, Taako!" He called, trying for pleasantly surprised as he raised a hand and waved. Taako glanced up and grinned, dropping his bag into the snow and jogged over.

"Hey handsome! Long time no see!" He called over the disgruntled cries of his two companions who had been left with the labour of unpacking.

"Hey, how was it?" Kravitz asked, striding towards him. "Did you ever end up finding a gift for Uncle Dav-"

"I need you to play along," Taako said in a frantic whisper, throwing his arms around Kravitz's neck and pulling him into a tight hug.

"What?" Kravitz hugged back instinctively.

"Do you trust me?" He asked, pulling away slightly.

"I hate it when you ask me that- yes?"

"Okay, then follow my lead," and then their fingers were intertwined and Taako was dragging Kravitz through the snow. He wasn't even sure what he just signed himself up for, but Taako looked like an angel in the snow. He could have told Kravitz to take a polar dip and he would have off principle.

"Thanks for leaving me with your heaviest bags, jackass," Taako's mirror image, presumably Lup, hissed.

"I'm sure Kravitz could have walked over alone," Barry (?) added.

"He could have, but I wouldn't let him." Taako grinned. "Give us a hand, bones?"

"Ah." His twin stopped him with a hand as Kravitz reached for a suit case. "Not so fast, we haven't even been properly introduced yet. My name is Lup."

"It's great to finally meet you," he shook her hand, "Taako's told me so much about you- I was starting to wonder if he was keeping us apart on purpose."

At that, she laughed. "Oh, probably- I'm sure he's worried I'll spill all his deepest secrets. Remind me to get your phone number before we leave. I need someone I trust to keep an eye on my little brother."

Taako squawked behind him, but Kravitz just smiled a little wider. "Absolutely. I'd like that."

"I'll have you know, Krav, I'm at least four minutes older-"

"They swapped the babies up, they don't know for sure, dingus-"

"Legally, my birth certificate says I was born first-"

"I'm assuming you're Barry?" Kravitz ducked out of the twin's firing range to head over to the middle aged man wrapped tight in a red coat and blue jeans. "Kravitz."

"You'd be correct in that- I'm Lup's husband. It's good to finally meet you- Lup and I have been discussing for a while what kind of person could possibly keep Taako entertained for anything longer than a week. He talks about you lots as well." Barry shook his hand firmly.

"Good things, I hope?"

"I think that's up to you to decide, bud." He shrugged, before turning back to address the twins, "Hon, we've got a long drive ahead of us. Why don't the four of us grab lunch before we head back to Elfington?"

"Thanks for the offer, Barold, but we're actually not done fighting," Taako said, slinging an arm over his sister's shoulder.

"Well, if you leave your bag in the snow like that, all your stuff is going to get wet," Barry gestured to a suitcase that had been lost in the chaos. "Let's finish unpacking quickly- I'll pay, is that what you wanted to hear, Taako?"

"It's exactly what I wanted to hear," Taako turned to Kravitz with a wide grin. "Come on, handsome, grab a bag. I'm hungry." ~~~~~~~~~~~~

("So, you've been roommates for three years?" Lup asked, picking her nails while she and Kravitz were alone in the elevator.

"Yeah, since freshman year." Kravitz nodded. "We've found that we get on surprisingly well."

"Clearly- I shared a room with my brother for eighteen years, and it's not easy," She nodded in agreement. "You gotta really love Taako to willingly put up with that kind of bullshit twenty-four sev."

Kravitz shrugged. "I mean, don't tell him I said this, but- he's Taako. He's worth a little bullshit every now and then."

"Huh," She broke out into a wild smile. "I think I like you, bones."

"You're not half bad yourself." He grinned, holding the door out of the residence for her. "We should hurry- a hangry Taako is not a fun Taako to be around.") ~~~~~~~~~~~~

("And how long have you been- y'know?" Barry asked, looking up through the rearview mirror of his car.

"Well, we started living together three years ago, but we didn't really start hitting it off until about six months after that," Kravitz offered, looking to Taako.

"He just needed time to warm up to the 'Taako-Kondo' organization method." Taako added.

"Dumping your things on the floor is not an organization method," Kravitz elbowed him with a smile.

"It is! I have a dirty pile, I have a clean pile, I have a school work I'm going to maybe finish pile, I have a school work I'm not going to finish pile-"

"Taako," Kravitz sighed in exasperation. "When we get back to campus, I am going to buy you a planner. There is no reason to not finish your school work."

"Uh, ch'yeah there is! I don't feel like it?"

"God," Lup groaned from the front seat, "You two bicker like an old married couple. Thank god we live five hours away, Bear- can you imagine lunch dates every week?"

"Forget how Barry feels," Taako leaned forwards to shove his head into her sightline. "If I had to go on a double date with you nasties every week, I'd lose my mind.")

~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

"So, what'd you think?" Taako asked, waving as Barry finally drove off. The sun had set, meaning that the two wouldn't be home until early morning. Taako had suggested that they stay the night in the dorms and head back in the morning, but Lup had adamantly refused. Said that Taako and Kravitz needed to catch up, and Kravitz would be lying if he said he wasn't a little relieved to have some one-on-one time with his best-friend.

"They're pretty great," Kravitz smiled. "I can see what you mean about Barry being a nerd, but I have to disagree with you calling Lup a tornado. She seems pretty cool."

"It's only the first day, handsome," Taako reminded him, linking their arms and heading towards their dorm. "She has plenty of time to prove herself as a walking disaster to you."

"I guess time will tell- she's got my number," He shrugged. "Hey, what did you mean earlier? When you told me to play along?"

"Oh," Taako dropped their linked arms as they stepped into the elevator. "Uh, about that- listen, I don't exactly know how they got to this conclusion, but Barry and Lup? Uh, they think we've been dating for a couple years. And, uh, I didn't know how to break the news? Because Lu seemed really excited? Something about you 'being the reason I haven't come home for a while', or whatever. I don't know."

Oh. Oh.

"Lup and I have been discussing for a while what kind of person could possibly keep Taako entertained for anything longer than a week."

"You gotta really love Taako to willingly put up with that kind of bullshit twenty-four sev."

"And how long have you been- y'know?"

"You two bicker like an old married couple. Thank god we live five hours away, Bear- can you imagine lunch dates every week?"

"If I had to go on a double date with you nasties every week, I'd lose my mind."

"Taako- oh my god." Kravitz gripped his roommate's sleeve.

"Did you- did you not realize?" Taako looked at him in surprise. "I thought those heart eyes were just for them. Did you really miss me that much?"

"This conversation is tabled." Kravitz flushed, shoving his still cool hands into his pockets. "Oh my god."

"No, let's talk more about how much you missed me, and why you looked like all you wanted to do was kiss me-"

"Tabled, Taako!"

"If it helps, I think you're really cute?"

Kravitz groaned. "I want to die, this is the worst night of my life."

"Well, I have an unlimited olive garden pass," Taako shrugged. "We could go make it better, if you wanted."

"Fine," Kravitz said, eyes still firmly on the elevator door in front of him and not on the blonde man that had just reached into his pocket to hold his hand. "But I'm getting a blue Hawaiian, and if you want any, you'll have to get your own."

"Babe, are you sure you'll even notice me drinking from it?" Taako teased.

Kravitz groaned again, and Taako laughed. "Kidding. Come on, let's get changed and then head out. Ch'boy's feelin' unlimited breadsticks."

[lyravellas]

and many more

Kravitz does not have a birthday.

Obviously he had a birthday at some point, years and years ago, but he certainly doesn’t remember it anymore.  That’s just kind of what happens when you’re a. dead and b. the grim reaper for an extended period of time. The situation doesn’t lend itself particularly well to maintaining a steady social life, much less yearly celebrations with friends.  The Raven Queen is very nice, but she doesn’t really know what birthdays are. Kravitz isn’t completely sure if she was ever actually born. The metaphysics of Faerun is a somewhat headache-inducing situation.

He mentions all of this to Taako during a lull in the conversation one night, while the elf is draped idly across both his lap and the sofa in front of the television.  Taako is not an easy person to dumbfound — being a universe-hopping, planet-saving, wildly successful chef and wizard can do that to you — but this information absolutely blows him away.  Kravitz would gloat about it, but he’s too busy dealing with an immediate, rapid-fire line of questioning from his boyfriend: how old is he, exactly? (He’s not sure.)  Does he know what month his birthday was in?  (He doesn’t.)  Does he even remember the last time he had a birthday party? (He does not. He can’t even remember what he had for breakfast this morning. This is a lost cause.)  Taako speaks with his hands like he always does when he gets excited about things, punctuating each question with exclamations like “How did this happen, Krav?  How?!” and a few emphatic statements of “What the fuck!” as prestidigitated sparks shoot wildly from his fingertips.

Once Kravitz has reassured his boyfriend that yes, he did have an actual birthday at one point and no, he didn’t spring fully-fledged from the brain of the Raven Queen when he was born (“Sweetie, what the hell?”), Taako reclines back down into his lap and hums thoughtfully to himself.  He runs a finger absently through Kravitz’s hair out of habit.  It sends a few wayward sparks fizzing gently about the reaper’s ears.

Then Taako excuses himself rather abruptly by launching his entire body up and over the back of the sofa with a wholly unnecessary levitation spell, startling both Kravitz and their cats in the process.  After a solemn apology to James Buffett Jr. and Stinky Fur Man, Taako waves his stone of farspeech wildly around his head and declares that he needs to take a call (“Do you mean make a call, darling?”  “I never make calls, I only take them.”).  He then departs the room with a flourish, after tilting Kravitz’s head back for a lingering kiss that leaves the reaper feeling more than a little light-headed.

Taako is gone for several minutes.  Kravitz becomes preoccupied with staring very hard at the wallpaper and trying to remember how old he actually is. He is unsuccessful. He develops a very bad headache in the process.

When Taako finally returns, he throws himself dramatically back onto the couch (and into Kravitz’s lap), and declares, “Alright babe, you’re gonna share mine.”

And Kravitz says “What?” because it’s been ten minutes, he has a headache, and Taako is pretty to the point of being very distracting.

The elf tucks the stone of farspeech back beneath the collar of his shirt and snaps his fingers (which forces Kravitz to tear his gaze away from the mesmerizing strip of skin at the curve of his boyfriend’s collarbone).  “You’re gonna share my birthday.  I went and talked to Lulu about it, and she says it’s fine.  She’s excited about it, actually,  even though I don’t think she’ll ever let me live this one down.”  He sighs dramatically.  “Ch’boy always used to complain about having to share a birthday back when we were kids, and now here I am asking her for a plus one.  The things I do for love.”  Taako pauses and then squints up at his boyfriend.  “Krav.  You doin’ alright up there?  You’ve been kinda quiet.”

Kravitz is experiencing a very large number of emotions in a very small period of time.

He recognizes excitement almost immediately — if there’s one thing that he remembers about birthdays, it’s that they’re a lot of fun.  And now he gets to experience his with the people he loves most in the world.  The thought of spending a day surrounded by Taako’s endearing grandstanding and Lup’s infectious laughter sends warmth whispering through his silent veins.

There’s also a little bit of fear, because he was at the twin’s last birthday and so he knows exactly what can happen at their parties.  And if he and Lucretia have to explain to the authorities why the entire city of New Phandalin levitated into the air for exactly twenty-six minutes again, then he is absolutely going to come back to life just so he can die again.  

But for some reason, he also feels sad.  

He hasn’t thought about things like this, like birthdays and balloons and parties, for years.  It’s just been him and his job, alone except for the distant lights floating in the never-ending expanse of the astral plane, for as long as he can remember.  The Raven Queen used to gently encourage him to try going out and meeting new people, but all of her well-meaning attempts had steadily diminished over the years as he’d continued to rebuff her suggestions.

Kravitz’s greatest fear has always been this: if he lets himself get tangled back up in the world of the living, the weight of all the things that he failed to do before joining the Raven Queen’s retinue will eventually crush him.  

For far too many years to count, he’d refused to let himself believe that there might be any option besides cutting himself off from the material plane entirely.  But now this beautiful, lovable elf, who is too loud and too brash and too proud sometimes (and who he loves more than life itself), has taken him by the hands and pulled him headfirst into something he hadn’t even let himself realize he’d missed.

He can feel a strange wetness gathering behind his eyes; a sensation that feels comfortingly familiar, yet still somewhat alien after all the years that time has spent moving steadily on without him.

Taako sits up and puts his arms around Kravitz and just holds him silently for a while.  He gets it.  Both of them do.  Loneliness leaves scars that re-open at the strangest times.

They stay like that until Kravitz finally lifts his face from where it’s buried in Taako’s shoulder, and James Buffet Jr. takes the opportunity to hop up onto his lap and curl into his arms to make sure he’s okay.  Then they sit together on the sofa as the television drones gently on in the background and talk about plans for their next birthday: about how great it’s going to be, about how Merle is not allowed near the flower arrangements, about how Barry is absolutely not allowed to raise any members of the fantasy Beatles from the dead to perform.  Eventually, the few wayward tears give way to laughter instead.

Their next birthday is legendary.

The moon is directly overhead and also on fire for the better part of thirty-five minutes. An entire building in Rockport gets transmuted into a fourteen-layer birthday cake. The Raven Queen shows up — making several individuals in attendance nearly pass out in fear — in order to wish everyone a happy birthday, and also to figure out what exactly a birthday actually is. She walks around arm in arm with Istus, who brings everyone hand-knitted sweaters as presents.  All of the clergymen in the nearby vicinity collectively shit themselves in amazement.

After the festivities are all over and everyone has returned to their respective homes, Kravitz and Taako find themselves back on their sofa, with the radio in the background reporting softly on the ridiculously ostentatious display of fireworks that had lit up the skies over Neverwinter that evening.

“How was your very first birthday à la Taako, cupcake?”  Taako asks Kravitz as the latter flops down onto his lap.  “Actually quick side note, we definitely have to figure out how old your ass actually is at some point.  Not that it’d make much of a difference, since you’ve got the whole spooky scary skeleton thing going on at work most of the time, but I want to see the look on people’s faces when I tell them that my boyfriend is over six hundred years old.”

“That’s an adventure for another time, I think.”  A smile creeps across Kravitz’s lips.  “Lucretia just finished putting out the moon. I don’t think Faerun can take any more excitement in one night.”

“Boring, but fair.” Taako sighs in mock disappointment.  “That leaves yours truly with the responsibility of ‘final surprise of the night’, then.”  He snaps his fingers and a perfectly wrapped package materializes in the palm of his hand, accompanied by a glittery puff of magical confetti.  “Ta-da!  Faerun’s favorite wizard does it again.”

Kravitz clears his throat.  “Not to one-up Faerun’s favorite wizard, but...” he trails off as he reaches into his pocket and pulls out a small, clumsily wrapped package.

Taako puts a hand over his heart and pretends to fan himself in shock.  “Betrayal!  Upstaged by the love of my life!  I’ll let it slide it this time, Krav, but next time...”  He continues his mock tirade as he lifts the gift out of Kravitz’s hands and leans forward to press a kiss to the side of his jaw.  “Next time I’m talking dozens of major images, plus a Taako original dance number!  Me, popping out of a chocolate fountain, dressed in lingerie that is not from Fantasy Costco! Just you wait.”  

Kravitz raises an eyebrow and manages to keep a straight face.  “Consider me warned,” he says, as Taako begins unwrapping the package.  Kravitz’s fingers move toward his own gift, but he pauses and watches with bated breath as his boyfriend tears off the final layer of wrapping paper.

Taako lifts the lid off of a tiny brown box and peers inside.  Even Faerun’s favorite wizard can’t manage to keep the shock off of his face.

“It’s not a... this isn’t a proposal,” Kravitz says quickly.  “We don’t have to... you know, do anything in the near future, if you don’t want to, it’s just sort of... it’s a promise?  Since we talked about it, and I—”

Taako uses one hand to take the ring out of the box and the other to press a finger to Kravitz’s lips.  “Yes.  Yes, of course, you gigantic nerd.  I love it.  I love you.”

Kravitz scoops Taako up into a wordless hug, spinning him around while simultaneously trying to land kisses wherever he can reach, smiling as the elf lets out a peal of laughter.

“So the way I see it, we’ve got two options.”  Taako wraps his arms around Kravitz’s neck as the reaper sets him back down onto the ground.  “Option one: we get hitched next Tuesday.  We invite everyone.  We party, ride off into the sunset, and then bang.  Easy peasy.”  A mischievous smile spreads across the elf’s face.  “Or, option two: we play the long game.”

Kravitz’s grin maches Taako’s.  “An extended engagement, then?”  

“Lup and Barold refused to admit that they even liked each other for years.  It was torture.”  Taako rolls his eyes.  “But we’ve got all the time in the world, hot stuff!  So let’s drag this out.  Be as lovey-dovey as possible.  Really make ‘em wait for it.”

Kravitz laughs.  “But... not for too long,” he says, reaching up to rest his palm against his boyfriend’s cheek.

“Not for too long,” Taako agrees.

[rockindragonz]

Just Like Him

Written for @itsstilllyou for the 2018 TaZ Queer Candlenights Gift Exchange!  <3 :D

Words: 3079

Summary: Angus is used to the stares at this point. He doesn't like them, but he's used to them. He's never seen anyone else like him until he sees Taako for the first time.  AKA a little boy imprints on our favorite meme wizard.

Ao3

Time and time again, Angus McDonald found himself in situations  like the one he is currently dealing with.  People around him who don't know him, can't see him, won't talk to him, or just ignore his existence altogether.  Honestly, it was no longer a bother to him, it was simply an inconvenience for a detective.  The train had proved to be a great means to an end and there were very few people aboard the train which made it easier to deal with the stares they sometimes shot him.  He will admit to himself that the stares are the worst part of his situation.  No matter how masculine he may dress, how short he may cut his curly hair, how low he keeps his golf hat, people could always only see 'female’ when they look at him.  It was frustrating knowing that they see him as one thing when he is absolutely another.

*

When he saw Taako get on the train in all of his long blonde, wizardly glory, it was shocking for the young boy.  This man was dressed in feminine clothing, had a very high pitched voice, and was almost certainly mistaken for a woman all the time, yet he had such an air of confidence about him that people were staring at him in a different way than they looked at Angus - in awe.  Something was fishy about the three travellers, but Angus found himself wanting to speak with the man if only to confirm his suspicions that he was just like him.  They approached him first, trying to act discreet about what was obviously supposed to be an undercover mission but they were failing horribly.

The mystery of the train prevented him from asking Taako outright, but he knew, if only in the way he carried himself.  There was the confidence, the suave nature, and the natural charm, but there was also the quiet self doubt, the mind that was thinking five steps ahead of his companions, and the hesitation every time he spoke.  Angus had known Taako for only a few hours, but he already knew with 100% certainty that Taako was just as trans as him.

*

Angus’ decision to join the Bureau of Balance was spurred by multiple instances.  Of course there was his investigation into the disappearances, but if he hadn't been told that the trio he had met on the Rockport Limited were part of the B.o.B. he probably wouldn't have seriously considered it.  In fact, he most likely would have refused due to not wanting it to be a conflict of interest that could harm his detective work.  But here he is.  Since joining the Bureau, he had felt safer and more at home than anywhere else in the world.  No one ever stared at him, no one gave his feminine pitch any second thoughts, no one even winced when we offhandedly mentioned that he had been having really bad cramps recently.  Lucretia had actually given him some medicinal plants she said she had used for cramps when she was his age.  It was treated scientifically instead of him feeling like a freak.  This place felt like home.

*

When the boys were on their mission to Lucas’ lab, he had never felt so anxious in all his life.  He didn't really know the trio all that well, and all they had done when knowing him was tease and bully him, but something in the way they teased and bullied was nice, almost familial in a way.  Taako was the biggest culprit of the family-type teasing.  His goofs never seemed to be intentionally harmful in a permanent way, they were always harmful in a goofy dad type of way, and he knew none of them would ever say anything that would actually hurt Angus.  But having those three go completely off the grid for so long had Angus panicking.  Lucretia was with him, but she was on edge and seemed horrifically close to breaking down, which only served to further Angus’ anxiety, because if the Director was nervous for the three men she barely knew, he knew something must truly be wrong.  When their voices finally came back, Angus could see the tension leave her body and he could feel his anxiety melt away.  He had known these men for such a short time, and yet they had caused him a great deal of stress.

*

Their story was one of epic proportions.  He couldn't understand most of it outright, but he saw flashes of what he needed most.  He saw Taako and his twin sister, Lup, laughing side by side.  His sister was like him too, but she, like Taako, was more confident in herself than Angus had ever see anyone be.  Angus saw them fighting back to back, kicking ass and taking names.  He saw Lup launch a volley of fire at boards high in the sky.  He saw Lup become a lich in front of her brother's eyes, and only saw the terror and worry in Taako's eyes for a split second.  He saw Taako and Lup and then he saw himself in the two of them.  He saw how similar they truly were, and he finally, finally saw that he was nothing to be ashamed of.  Despite what his parents thought, despite what his family thought, despite what the world may think of him, he was special and he wouldn't stand for anyone to look down on him again.

*

After the Day of Story and Song, Angus had to figure out where to go.  He had no home aside from the B.o.B. and Lucretia had disbanded it promptly following the defeat of the Hunger.  It had been the closest thing Angus had ever had to a real family and now it was gone, just like that.  But he still had them.  He knew they still love him, no matter how far apart they got.  When he told the main trio that he had no idea where to go, Magnus immediately offered for Angus to live with him for a while, until he found his family.

“Oh no sir, my family is dead, they have been for a long time,” Angus said.

“What about the grandpa you were headed to back on the Rockport Limited?” Taako said, cocking his head to the side.

“That was a clever ruse on my part so no one would question why a little boy was travelling alone!”

“So you're all alone then?” Kravitz said.

“Yeah, but I'm used to it!  I've been alone for a long time!”

“Well you're coming with us,” Taako said, arms crossed over his chest, “I can't be held responsible for teaching you magic and then having you go off and go nuts with it!  That would be irresponsible.  Kravitz, let's find a home for 3, got it big guy?”  At the proposition of living with Taako, Kravitz's dark skin grew red, but he grinned and nodded all the same.

“If you ever need a break from those two,” Magnus said, “call me.”  Angus just smiled a soft smile, one that didn't show just how shocked and happy he was that Taako of all people was taking him in.  He couldn't wait for his new life to start.

*

Taako and Kravitz spent a long time looking for a place.  During this time, the three of them stayed at various inns and hotels where many people refused to accept Taako's money because they all knew who he was.  On the surface, Taako took it with grace and thanked them, but he would always leave the proper amount of gold on one of the beds when he thought Angus and Kravitz weren't looking.  When they finally did settle down, Kravitz and Taako had found a home that was far too big for just the three of them, but was big enough to fit the whole IPRE crew.  When Kravitz and Taako had been talking with the realtor, she mentioned that the house had belonged to a wealthy couple that had been a part of the massive casualties of the Hunger.  Both Taako and Kravitz were sympathetic, but the realtor assured them that the couple 'had it coming’.  At that phrase, a moment of disbelief and confusion crossed Taako's face, but he remained poised and collected, he did love the mansion after all and the massive kitchen it had in it.  They sealed the deal and moved in as soon as they could.  Angus got a huge room all to himself with his own bathroom even.  Taako and Kravitz shared the master bedroom of course, and they had 5 vacant rooms for when the IPRE visited and bathrooms attached to each one.

For Angus, the home felt eerily familiar.  He found himself trying to walk quietly, peeking around corners before walking around them, and trying to make himself as small as possible.  Whenever Taako or Kravitz noticed, Angus would apologize and shake his head, unsure of the reason why he was so jumpy in the home.  Naturally, he had to investigate.  He went to the neighbors to ask about the previous owners, and the elderly woman had said they were a black couple with no children and a large family that lived elsewhere that would visit during the holidays.  She had also told him that they had once had a young girl around the manor that looked very much like him, but the girl had died a long time before the Hunger came.  Angus delved deeper into the history of the house and even contacted the local sheriff to get more information.  All the sheriff would tell him was that he had gotten many noise complaints over the years about the couple yelling so loud the neighbors could hear.  Still, Angus’ curiosity wasn't satisfied.  One morning, he was going over his notes before Kravitz was ready to teleport him to school when Taako came and dropped off his breakfast.

“Whatcha got there Ango?” he said.

“Just some notes on a mystery I've needed to solve.  I want to know who used to live here!”

At that, Taako's eyes grew slightly bigger for a split second before he blinked and looked away.  “You don't remember?”

“Huh?”

Taako sighed and set down the pan he's been serving breakfast from.  “Angus, shit, let me get Krav in here, I'm not good at this shit.”  As if by magic, Kravitz walked through the dining room door.

“Hey kid, ready for school yet?”

“Krav, we gotta talk,” Taako said with a grimace.  Immediately, Kravitz looked concerned, but he regained his composure and smoothed his shirt down.  Taako sat across from Angus while Kravitz pulled up a chair next to him.

“We thought you knew, but didn't want to talk about it.  Fuck, dude, I can't do feelings and shit like that.”

“What Taako means to say,” Kravitz said, shooting a light glare Taako's way, “is that we didn't want to pressure you into talking about something you don't want to talk about.”

“What?” Angus said.

“Look, Angus, this house belonged to a couple called the McDonalds.”  And, just like that, all of the memories he had blocked out for years came rushing back.

“I can't believe you don't remember that, you grew up here,” Kravitz said, reaching out towards him.  As if Kravitz was throwing a flame at him, Angus flinched backwards and sat up a little straighter.  Kravitz retracted his hand, but a look of concern was plastered on his face.  It was as if he had a permanent scowl now.

Taako opened his mouth, Angus knew he was saying something to him, but none of the words were actually entering his brain.  He was watching his memories come flooding back almost like nightmare.  His mom walking with him through a dress shop when he was maybe 3 years old, making him try on frilly dress after frilly dress.  He came out in one with a frown on his face and he pointed at the suits asking his mom why he couldn't wear pants because pants would be easier to play in.  He heard his mom telling him that ladies don't wear pants to formal events.  He asked why.  His mother smacked his mouth.  He saw his father tearing apart a drawing Angus had done of himself in pants instead of a dress when he was 5.  He had drawn it because he knew pants were more comfortable.  He wasn't allowed to wear pants from then on.  His father had made him turn around and Angus was spanked for his actions. Angus saw himself in a frilly white and pink dress with long, fluffy curled hair when he was 8.  He saw his mom applying light makeup to his face.  He saw himself get grabbed by a man at the party and dragged away by his  hair before he was luckily seen by a butler.  He saw himself, that same day, with a knife cutting his hair in the bathroom as short as he could manage so no one could grab it again.  He saw his mother and father screaming at him, calling him a lady, and telling him that ladies couldn't have short hair.  He saw himself bruised.

“Angus?” Kravitz said.  Angus blinked, realizing with a start that his face was wet and he was holding his breath.  He let it out in a blubbering sigh as Kravitz scooped him into a hug with no warning.  Taako was there soon too, hugging him and holding his hand so tightly that he almost couldn't breathe.  Taako was muttering things, thing Angus knew he said to Lup when she called in a panic because she had woken up in darkness from a nightmare about black curtains, things that were somehow grounding him in the current reality.  When he finally stopped sobbing, Kravitz's shirt was wet from his tears and there was a mark on Taako's hand where he had been squeezing it.

“Can you tell us what's happening now Angus?” Kravitz said, patient as ever.  Angus only nodded slowly, as if he was only just now truly absorbing all the shit he had been through.

“My parents, the McDonalds, were…” he paused “they were...horrible.  They-they hit me and called me a lady and hit me whenever I didn't act like one.  I ran away when I was 10 and started doing detective work because I had always been curious.  I cut my hair.  I'm a boy.  Not a girl.  I was never a girl, but they called me a girl.”  Taako's fist clenched and Angus could see the rage building in his eyes, but his face remained neutral.  Kravitz, however, was looking at him with sympathy and love.  Anger was there, it was definitely there, but Kravitz was much better at masking his emotions than Taako had ever been.

“They aren't here to hurt you anymore.  We will move too, so you don't have to live where they were.  You will never have to think of them again, okay?”

“I don't want to move.  I want to live here with you two and Magnus and Merle and Lup and Barry and everyone.  You guys loved me when I needed it, even though I didn't really get why at the time.”  Angus wiped his eyes with the sleeve of his jacket and sniffled a little.  He nodded, mostly to himself, and reached out to hug Taako and Kravitz as best he could with his small arms.  They responded instantaneously and wrapped their arms around him securely.

“They aren't my family anymore,” he whispered.

“Yeah, fuck those fuckers, we are your dads now, shit lil dude, you’re fuckin adopted,” Taako said.  His voice was final as he spoke with no uncertainty in his voice.  Kravitz only laughed and squeezed the two of them tighter.  Angus breathed for a moment, afraid, but happy, and for the first time in his whole life, he knew he truly had a family that loved and accepted him for who he was.

*

Life continued as normal after that day.  Taako insisted that Angus see someone and talk about 'the bullshit he went through’ as he had out it, and it seemed to help Angus a lot.  He was able to talk about everything to a total stranger.  Sometimes Taako and Kravitz would come and listen whenever Angus felt comfortable letting them in.  Truth be told, Angus was comfortable with them from the beginning, but Taako was insistent that the first few sessions be his and his alone.  He got happier and felt safer than he ever had before, and he continued learning magic at Lucas’ school.  Taako teased him endlessly about attending his rival's school instead of his own father's, but the teasing was always light hearted.  Lup and Barry built a small home attached to the mansion the three of them lived in, so they were there frequently.  No one outright told Angus why, but he assumed that it was because of the nightmares and the fact that being separated stressed them both out.  The rest of the IPRE and the BoB came for holidays and the anniversary of the Day of Story and Song to celebrate and to confirm that they were all still alive and okay.  Angus thrived in his home with his family and friends that he had grown to love more than anything in the world.  Angus was truly and completely happy.

*

What Angus didn't know, however, was that the day after he had told Taako and Kravitz his life story, the two of them plus Lup and Barry had gone to the Raven Queen and asked to see Mr. and Mrs. McDonald.  All knowing as she is, the Raven Queen summoned the souls from the lake without question and watched as Kravitz yelled louder than he ever had.  He told the McDonalds that Angus was never their son, that his son was going to be happy and that they would never get the chance to see him succeed and be happy.  They had tried to tell Kravitz that they only had a daughter, but Lup had cast a fireball that left their spirits extinguished forever.  She had gotten a slap on the wrist from the Raven Queen for that one, obliterating souls was very against the laws of nature, but nothing more.  They were, after all, horrible people to her grandson.

But hey.  What Angus didn't know, would never have to hurt him.

[queertazsecretsanta]

Home

A gift for @itsstillyou, created by @rockindragonz!

(trigger warning: reference to past child abuse)

Title: Home

Time and time again, Angus McDonald found himself in situations like the one he is currently dealing with. People around him who don’t know him, can’t see him, won’t talk to him, or just ignore his existence altogether. Honestly, it was no longer a bother to him, it was simply an inconvenience for a detective. The train had proved to be a great means to an end and there were very few people aboard the train which made it easier to deal with the stares they sometimes shot him.  He will admit to himself that the stares are the worst part of his situation. No matter how masculine he may dress, how short he may cut his curly hair, how low he keeps his golf hat, people could always only see ‘female’ when they look at him. It was frustrating knowing that they see him as one thing when he is absolutely another.

When he saw Taako get on the train in all of his long blonde, wizardly glory, it was shocking for the young boy.  This man was dressed in feminine clothing, had a very high pitched voice, and was almost certainly mistaken for a woman all the time, yet he had such an air of confidence about him that people were staring at him in a different way than they looked at Angus - in awe.  Something was fishy about the three travelers, but Angus found himself wanting to speak with the man if only to confirm his suspicions that he was just like him. They approached him first, trying to act discreet about what was obviously supposed to be an undercover mission but they were failing horribly.

The mystery of the train prevented him from asking Taako outright, but he knew, if only in the way he carried himself.  There was the confidence, the suave nature, and the natural charm, but there was also the quiet self doubt, the mind that was thinking five steps ahead of his companions, and the hesitation every time he spoke.  Angus had known Taako for only a few hours, but he already knew with 100% certainty that Taako was just as trans as him.

Angus’s decision to join the Bureau of Balance was spurred by multiple instances.  Of course there was his investigation into the disappearances, but if he hadn’t been told that the trio he had met on the Rockport Limited were part of the B.o.B. he probably wouldn’t have seriously considered it.  In fact, he most likely would have refused due to not wanting it to be a conflict of interest that could harm his detective work. But here he is. Since joining the Bureau, he had felt safer and more at home than anywhere else in the world.  No one ever stared at him, no one gave his feminine pitch any second thoughts, no one even winced when we offhandedly mentioned that he had been having really bad cramps recently. Lucretia had actually given him some medicinal plants she said she had used for cramps when she was his age.  It was treated scientifically instead of him feeling like a freak. This place felt like home.

When the boys were on their mission to Lucas’ lab, he had never felt so anxious in all his life.  He didn’t really know the trio all that well, and all they had done when knowing him was tease and bully him, but something in the way they teased and bullied was nice, almost familial in a way. Taako was the biggest culprit of the family-type teasing. His goofs never seemed to be intentionally harmful in a permanent way, they were always harmful in a goofy dad type of way, and he knew none of them would ever say anything that would actually hurt Angus.  But having those three go completely off the grid for so long had Angus panicking. Lucretia was with him, but she was on edge and seemed horrifically close to breaking down, which only served to further Angus’ anxiety, because if the Director was nervous for the three men she barely knew, he knew something must truly be wrong.  When their voices finally came back, Angus could see the tension leave her body and he could feel his anxiety melt away. He had known these men for such a short time, and yet they had caused him a great deal of stress.

Their story was one of epic proportions.  He couldn’t understand most of it outright, but he saw flashes of what he needed most.  He saw Taako and his twin sister, Lup, laughing side by side. His sister was like him too, but she, like Taako, was more confident in herself than Angus had ever see anyone be.  Angus saw them fighting back to back, kicking ass and taking names. He saw Lup launch a volley of fire at boards high in the sky. He saw Lup become a lich in front of her brother’s eyes, and only saw the terror and worry in Taako’s eyes for a split second.  He saw Taako and Lup and then he saw himself in the two of them. He saw how similar they truly were, and he finally, finally saw that he was nothing to be ashamed of. Despite what his parents thought, despite what his family thought, despite what the world may think of him, he was special and he wouldn’t stand for anyone to look down on him again.

After the Day of Story and Song, Angus had to figure out where to go.  He had no home aside from the B.o.B. and Lucretia had disbanded it promptly following the defeat of the Hunger.  It had been the closest thing Angus had ever had to a real family and now it was gone, just like that. But he still had them.  He knew they still loved him, no matter how far apart they got. When he told the main trio that he had no idea where to go, Magnus immediately offered for Angus to live with him for a while, until he found his family.

“Oh no sir, my family is dead, they have been for a long time,” Angus said.

“What about the grandpa you were headed to back on the Rockport Limited?” Taako said, cocking his head to the side.

“That was a clever ruse on my part so no one would question why a little boy was travelling alone!”

“So you’re all alone then?” Kravitz said.

“Yeah, but I’m used to it!  I’ve been alone for a long time!”

“Well you’re coming with us,” Taako said, arms crossed over his chest, “I can’t be held responsible for teaching you magic and then having you go off and go nuts with it!  That would be irresponsible. Kravitz, let’s find a home for 3, got it big guy?” At the proposition of living with Taako, Kravitz’s dark skin grew red, but he grinned and nodded all the same.

“If you ever need a break from those two,” Magnus said, “call me.”  Angus just smiled a soft smile, one that didn’t show just how shocked and happy he was that Taako of all people was taking him in.  He couldn’t wait for his new life to start.

Taako and Kravitz spent a long time looking for a place.  During this time, the three of them stayed at various inns and hotels where many people refused to accept Taako’s money because they all knew who he was.  On the surface, Taako took it with grace and thanked them, but he would always leave the proper amount of gold on one of the beds when he thought Angus and Kravitz weren’t looking.  When they finally did settle down, Kravitz and Taako had found a home that was far too big for just the three of them, but was big enough to fit the whole IPRE crew. When Kravitz and Taako had been talking with the realtor, she mentioned that the house had belonged to a wealthy couple that had been a part of the massive casualties of the Hunger.  Both Taako and Kravitz were sympathetic, but the realtor assured them that the couple ‘had it coming’. At that phrase, a moment of disbelief and confusion crossed Taako’s face, but he remained poised and collected, he did love the mansion after all and the massive kitchen it had in it. They sealed the deal and moved in as soon as they could. Angus got a huge room all to himself with his own bathroom even.  Taako and Kravitz shared the master bedroom of course, and they had 5 vacant rooms for when the IPRE visited and bathrooms attached to each one.

For Angus, the home felt eerily familiar.  He found himself trying to walk quietly, peeking around corners before walking around them, and trying to make himself as small as possible.  Whenever Taako or Kravitz noticed, Angus would apologize and shake his head, unsure of the reason why he was so jumpy in the home. Naturally, he had to investigate.  He went to the neighbors to ask about the previous owners, and the elderly woman had said they were a black couple with no children and a large family that lived elsewhere that would visit during the holidays.  She had also told him that they had once had a young girl around the manor that looked very much like him, but the girl had died a long time before the Hunger came. Angus delved deeper into the history of the house and even contacted the local sheriff to get more information.  All the sheriff would tell him was that he had gotten many noise complaints over the years about the couple yelling so loud the neighbors could hear. Still, Angus’ curiosity wasn’t satisfied. One morning, he was going over his notes before Kravitz was ready to teleport him to school when Taako came and dropped off his breakfast.

“Whatcha got there Ango?” he said.

“Just some notes on a mystery I’ve needed to solve.  I want to know who used to live here!”

At that, Taako’s eyes grew slightly bigger for a split second before he blinked and looked away.  “You don’t remember?”

“Huh?”

Taako sighed and set down the pan he’s been serving breakfast from.  “Angus, shit, let me get Krav in here, I’m not good at this shit.” As if by magic, Kravitz walked through the dining room door.

“Hey kid, ready for school yet?”

“Krav, we gotta talk,” Taako said with a grimace.  Immediately, Kravitz looked concerned, but he regained his composure and smoothed his shirt down.  Taako sat across from Angus while Kravitz pulled up a chair next to him.

“We thought you knew, but didn’t want to talk about it.  Fuck, dude, I can’t do feelings and shit like that.”

“What Taako means to say,” Kravitz said, shooting a light glare Taako’s way, “is that we didn’t want to pressure you into talking about something you don’t want to talk about.”

“What?” Angus said.

“Look, Angus, this house belonged to a couple called the McDonalds.”  And, just like that, all of the memories he had blocked out for years came rushing back.

“I can’t believe you don’t remember that, you grew up here,” Kravitz said, reaching out towards him.  As if Kravitz was throwing a flame at him, Angus flinched backwards and sat up a little straighter. Kravitz retracted his hand, but a look of concern was plastered on his face.  It was as if he had a permanent scowl now.

Taako opened his mouth, Angus knew he was saying something to him, but none of the words were actually entering his brain.  He was watching his memories come flooding back almost like nightmare. His mom walking with him through a dress shop when he was maybe 3 years old, making him try on frilly dress after frilly dress.  He came out in one with a frown on his face and he pointed at the suits asking his mom why he couldn’t wear pants because pants would be easier to play in. He heard his mom telling him that ladies don’t wear pants to formal events.  He asked why. His mother smacked his mouth. He saw his father tearing apart a drawing Angus had done of himself in pants instead of a dress when he was 5. He had drawn it because he knew pants were more comfortable. He wasn’t allowed to wear pants from then on.  His father had made him turn around and Angus was spanked for his actions. Angus saw himself in a frilly white and pink dress with long, fluffy curled hair when he was 8. He saw his mom applying light makeup to his face. He saw himself get grabbed by a man at the party and dragged away by his hair before he was luckily seen by a butler. He saw himself, that same day, with a knife cutting his hair in the bathroom as short as he could manage so no one could grab it again. He saw his mother and father screaming at him, calling him a lady, and telling him that ladies couldn’t have short hair.  He saw himself bruised.

“Angus?” Kravitz said. Angus blinked, realizing with a start that his face was wet and he was holding his breath. He let it out in a blubbering sigh as Kravitz scooped him into a hug with no warning. Taako was there soon too, hugging him and holding his hand so tightly that he almost couldn’t breathe.  Taako was muttering things, thing Angus knew he said to Lup when she called in a panic because she had woken up in darkness from a nightmare about black curtains, things that were somehow grounding him in the current reality. When he finally stopped sobbing, Kravitz’s shirt was wet from his tears and there was a mark on Taako’s hand where he had been squeezing it.

“Can you tell us what’s happening now Angus?” Kravitz said, patient as ever.  Angus only nodded slowly, as if he was only just now truly absorbing all the shit he had been through.

“My parents, the McDonalds, were…” he paused “they were…horrible.  They-they hit me and called me a lady and hit me whenever I didn’t act like one. I ran away when I was 10 and started doing detective work because I had always been curious. I cut my hair. I’m a boy. Not a girl. I was never a girl, but they called me a girl.” Taako’s fist clenched and Angus could see the rage building in his eyes, but his face remained neutral.  Kravitz, however, was looking at him with sympathy and love. Anger was there, it was definitely there, but Kravitz was much better at masking his emotions than Taako had ever been.

“They aren’t here to hurt you anymore.  We will move too, so you don’t have to live where they were.  You will never have to think of them again, okay?”

“I don’t want to move.  I want to live here with you two and Magnus and Merle and Lup and Barry and everyone.  You guys loved me when I needed it, even though I didn’t really get why at the time.” Angus wiped his eyes with the sleeve of his jacket and sniffled a little.  He nodded, mostly to himself, and reached out to hug Taako and Kravitz as best he could with his small arms. They responded instantaneously and wrapped their arms around him securely.

“They aren’t my family anymore,” he whispered.

“Yeah, fuck those fuckers, we are your dads now, shit lil dude, you’re fuckin adopted,” Taako said.  His voice was final as he spoke with no uncertainty in his voice. Kravitz only laughed and squeezed the two of them tighter.  Angus breathed for a moment, afraid, but happy, and for the first time in his whole life, he knew he truly had a family that loved and accepted him for who he was.

Life continued as normal after that day.  Taako insisted that Angus see someone and talk about 'the bullshit he went through’ as he had put it, and it seemed to help Angus a lot.  He was able to talk about everything to a total stranger. Sometimes Taako and Kravitz would come and listen whenever Angus felt comfortable letting them in.  Truth be told, Angus was comfortable with them from the beginning, but Taako was insistent that the first few sessions be his and his alone. He got happier and felt safer than he ever had before, and he continued learning magic at Lucas’ school.  Taako teased him endlessly about attending his rival’s school instead of his own father’s, but the teasing was always light hearted. Lup and Barry built a small home attached to the mansion the three of them lived in, so they were there frequently.  No one outright told Angus why, but he assumed that it was because of the nightmares and the fact that being separated stressed them both out. The rest of the IPRE and the BoB came for holidays and the anniversary of the Day of Story and Song to celebrate and to confirm that they were all still alive and okay.  Angus thrived in his home with his family and friends that he had grown to love more than anything in the world. Angus was truly and completely happy.

What Angus didn’t know, however, was that the day after he had told Taako and Kravitz his life story, the two of them plus Lup and Barry had gone to the Raven Queen and asked to see Mr. and Mrs. McDonald.  All knowing as she is, the Raven Queen summoned the souls from the lake without question and watched as Kravitz yelled louder than he ever had. He told the McDonalds that Angus was never their son, that his son was going to be happy and that they would never get the chance to see him succeed and be happy.  They had tried to tell Kravitz that they only had a daughter, but Lup had cast a fireball that left their spirits extinguished forever.  She had gotten a slap on the wrist from the Raven Queen for that one, obliterating souls was very against the laws of nature, but nothing more.  They were, after all, horrible people to her grandson.

But hey.  What Angus didn’t know, would never have to hurt him.

[terezis]

I want a scenario (or whole fic) where Taako and Kravitz aren’t together. I want mutual pining, baby. I want those awkward moments where they both reach for the same thing and their hands touch and they both get embarrassed and flustered. I want everyone to know they like each other EXCEPT for them. I want their friends to come up with elaborate plans to get them together! I want Lup to trip Taako, causing him to stumble into Krav and for Krav to be like “are you alright??” I NEED MUTUAL PINING

(It’s a fake dating AU, lads: Kravitz acts as Taako’s bodyguard in the days leading up to the trial at Glamour Springs and pretends to be his boyfriend in order to maintain some semblance of a cover. Absolutely no feelings are involved, at all, whatsoever. Wink.)

“Okay, but like, you know he’s super into you, right?” Lup hops up onto the counter beside him and kicks her feet. Her heels click-clack, click-clack against the laminated wood. “Like, I thought you had it bad, but every time Krav Maga looks at you, he hits new and exciting levels of gay.”

Taako snorts but doesn’t dare dignify that with a response. Lulu has her heart in the right place and that’s real sweet ‘n all, but unfortunately, she’s completely mistaken about where Kravitz’s loyalties lie.

This is just another job for him.

Taako finishes chopping the last of the pepper and turns to add it to the wok. Lup follows, because she doesn’t know when to quit.

“Heat’s on way too high,” she says. “S'gonna burn.”

“Fuck you, you’ve never made a decent stir fry in your life,” Taako lies. When she turns to grab the soy sauce he quickly lowers the heat. “Besides,” he says, after a long moment, “dude’s a professional. He ain’t about to bang a client.”

“Former client,” Lup corrects. “Taako, I’ve never seen someone so in love in my life, and I’m best friends with Magnus Waxmen née Burnsides. Barry pined for five years before we started dating and Kravitz is gonna give him a run for his money.”

“See, you say that, but it took you four and a half to even notice ‘cause you were too busy pining yourself.”

On any other day this would start another round of bickering, but tonight Lup doesn't take the bait. “Exactly!” she grins, and it’s all teeth. Taako’s ears twitch. “So you know I know what I’m talking about.”

Taako scoffs as he removes the cooked vegetables from the skillet. “Grab the meat from the marinade,” he says, though Lup’s already halfway to the fridge. “If anything love’s made you blind, Lu, you dunno shit.”

Lup hums. She pulls the plastic wrap up and away from the plate, prods the meat with a pair of tongs before bringing it to the stove top. It sizzles as she puts it into the pan. The scent of honey and sesame oil fills the room. “What time is he coming over?”

“I don’t - I mean - it’s not like it’s a, a date -”

“Taako, you’re wearing those kitten heels you got at the outlets, dunno how much more obvious you can get. You look good!” she says, the absolute terror. “He’s gonna lose it when he sees you.”

Taako hip-checks her and swipes the tongs. If he’s so busy flipping the meat that he can’t face his traitor of a sister, that’s just coincidence. Gotta make sure it’s thoroughly cooked; he has a reputation to maintain, after all.

“Get out,” Taako says weakly. “He’s gonna be here any minute and I’m not gonna let you eat him alive before we’ve had any fuckin’ dinner.”

“Yeah, I’ll leave that part to you,” Lup winks, then promptly gags. “Okay, no, let’s pretend I never went there. Gross.”

The doorbell rings.

“Out, get out!” Taako hisses. “Go through the window if you have to! Bye!”

Lup rolls her eyes and flips him off, turning to leave. Then she pauses. Glances back at Taako, grinning, and scrambles to the apartment door. Taako curses.

“Don’t you fuckin’ dare - Kravitz! Heeey there, handsome,” Taako starts. His voice is three octaves too high. Kravitz stands in the open doorway, smiling politely. His whole face lights up when he sees Taako. Taako can feel his cheeks burning, a combination of Lup’s teasing and his attempt to outrun her, but mostly it’s thanks to the way Kravitz’s suit hugs him in all the right places.

Fuck. He’s a goner.

Lup stands between them, grinning like a wolf. When Taako and Kravitz do nothing but continue to moon, her smirk grows wider.

“Well, don’t let me get in your way,” she says, slipping between Kravitz and through the door. “Have a nice night, boys!”

She plants a hand between Kravitz’s shoulder blades as she goes and shoves him, hard. Kravitz stumbles forward. Taako’s usual instinct would be to glide out of the way and laugh; for some reason, he lurches forward to catch Kravitz instead. He glares at Lup’s receding figure as she disappears down the hallway, spring in her step.

Kravitz steadies himself with cool, firm hands around Taako’s waist and looks up, flushed. Their faces are inches apart. His eyes flick to Taako’s lips and then back up again. Taako swallows hard, bringing his arms down to rest against Kravitz’s chest, and pointedly avoids eye contact. “You, uh -” He clears his throat. “you good, thug?”

Kravitz blinks, then, and seems to come back to himself. He jolts backwards. Taako tries not to take offense. “Yes, I’m - sorry. yes. I’m… good.” He scratches the back of his neck and laughs, a bit self-consciously. “I brought the exit paperwork you asked for. Shall we?”

Right. Exit paperwork. The termination of Kravitz’s contract, at which point they’ll have no reason to see each other again. This isn’t a date; it’s a final hurrah. His heart thuds painfully in his chest. It’d be nice if Lup were right, but she’s a hopeless romantic. Taako alone knows the truth.

Still, he grins lazily as he gestures Kravitz through the door.

[fia-bonkginya]

right now i’m really wanting a trans (or maybe he/him agender? i just associate green with him for some reason) joaquin i love him so much also aroace joaquin? perfect. i’m just out here lovin joaquin rn he’s great i’m so proud of him -lulu

i love joaquin and i love this hc and i got inspired so? enjoy this thing, featuring trans ace/greyromantic joaquin still bein friends with taako post s&s and also bonding with lup

(and no i’m not projecting my issues onto Joaquin what are you talking about)

“I just, I don’t know what to do, alright? What am I supposed to do in this situation? I don’t know how to handle this, I don’t know what to say, I don’t know how they’ll respond if I do say something, I…” Joaquin sighs, rubbing a hand over his face. “Sorry, sorry, you probably don’t need to hear about this.”

“My dude,” Taako says, barely looking up from filing his nails, “I have been waiting for you to talk about some kind of romantic interest for fucking ages.”

“Yeah,” Joaquin says, rolling his eyes, “but I’m not actually, like, doing anything about it.”

“Well then do something,” Taako says, as if it’s the easiest thing in the world, which it probably is for him. “I mean, come on, saying something the second time we met worked pretty well for me and Krav, right?”

“Yeah, okay, but you’re… you’re Taako from TV! You’re a pretty big deal!”

“And you, my friend.” Taako points the nail file at him, and Joaquin flinches for a second before remembering that they can’t actually make physical contact. “You got wizard powers and saved the world.”

Joaquin blushes. He’s always hated talking about that day- yes, it was amazing, and meeting Taako and saving his friends was the best, but it’s… embarrassing. He’s not used to people staring at him, wanting to meet him. “And, honestly, that’s part of the problem,” he finally says. “They’re super cute, right? Like. Holy shit. Super cute. And they come to the truck almost every day, and my bro says that they only come when I’m working, so they’ve figured out my schedule, which might mean they’re interested, but at this point lots of people do that! I’m famous, somehow! People want to meet me! So maybe they’re just, I don’t know, a big fan?”

Taako sets his file down and picks up a bottle of nail polish. “Well, you’ll never know if you keep thinking so much. Just, I don’t fuckin know, write your number on a napkin next time they order a taco.”

“Yeah, but like, what if they don’t like me back? What if they laugh?”

“What if who laughs?” comes a voice, and Taako turns around.

“Oh, hey,” he says, talking to someone that Joaquin can’t see through the annoyingly small window of their frying pan/mirror communication. “Just talking to Joaquin about his romantic failures.”

“Oh, sick!” the voice responds, and it sounds familiar in a way that Joaquin can’t quite place. “Can I finally meet this dude?”

“Yeah, sure, whatever,” Taako says, and the field of view shifts as he apparently hands the mirror off to whoever just entered the room.

Joaquin holds in a gasp as he finds himself staring at a face that is almost identical to Taako’s. “Oh, my god,” he says, trying (and probably failing) to stay cool. “Uh, hey, um, you’re, uh, probably Lup, right?”

“Yeah, man,” she responds, and she’s grinning, and Joaquin feels like he might pass out. “So what are we talkin about here?”

“Um,” Joaquin starts, trying to remember what it is they were talking about. “Um, there’s a really cute person who keeps buying tacos from me and I kind of really want to date them but I also super don’t know how.”

Lup’s smile, if possible, gets bigger. “Well lucky for you I stopped by. This dingus you’ve been talking to has never had problems just immediately confessing to any guy he thought was hot.”

“And it always worked!” Taako responds from out of view, and Lup rolls her eyes.

“Anyway. I get it, man. Asking people out is hard. It took Barry and I, what, like 40 years to figure it out?”

“Yeah, 40 years of absolutely disgusting pining and not listening to your brother.”

“The point is,” Lup says, cutting Taako off, “I get it.”

Joaquin sighs. “I just, I don’t know, this is all super new for me, and there are so many things to be worried about! I’ve never had a crush on anyone before, so I don’t know how things are supposed to work out. And, like, how do I know if they even like guys? And if they do, how do I know if they’ll, um, y’know…”

“Like you?” Lup finishes. 

“Yeah,” Joaquin responds. “It just feels like there are too many things that could go wrong. Plus I’m super complicated, and who knows if they’d want to deal with that? Not everyone can get past the ace thing and the trans thing.”

“And if they can’t,” Lup says, and her face is serious, “then they’re a fucking idiot and you don’t want to date them anyway.”

Joaquin feels himself starting to smile. “When you and Barry finally started talking, were you, um, worried about that kind of stuff?”

“Sure,” Lup shrugs, “a little bit. But at that point, I was pretty chill with risking it. I love Barry a lot, and I knew I had to say something.”

“I think, um, I should get to know them a little bit maybe? Gods, I don’t even know their name, so maybe I should start there.”

The view suddenly shifts as Taako apparently grabs the mirror back. “My dude, you didn’t tell me that you don’t even know their name! Even I figured out Krav’s name before anything else!”

Joaquin groans, resisting the urge to put his head in his hands. “Okay, yes, I get it, I don’t know how to romance.”

“But you’re learning!” Lup says. “You better update Taako so he can update me if anything happens, got it?”

“Yeah, got it,” Joaquin says, that smile creeping back onto his face again. “Um, thanks, by the way.”

“You don’t have to thank me for anything,” Taako says with a grin, and Joaquin can hear Lup laugh. 

“Barry and Krav are gonna be expecting dinner when they get home,” Lup says, her voice starting to fade, and Joaquin guesses that she’s leaving the room.

“Yeah, yeah, I’ll get to it,” Taako replies, waving her off.

“It was cool meeting you, Joaquin!” she shouts, and Joaquin is fully grinning now.

“It was cool meeting you, too!” he shouts back.

Taako points at him. “Don’t start thinking my idiot sister is cooler than me, got it?”

“Yeah, yeah, got it,” Joaquin says, holding in a laugh. “I’ve got a work in a few minutes, and it seems like you’re busy too, so I’ll talk to you again at some point?”

“Sure,” Taako says, picking up his nail polish. “Good luck.”

Joaquin smiles as the image disappears from his frying pan.

[midnigtartist]

7 with taakitz, which one of them would be this extra???

Thank you Nonny for my life

I gotta a little liberal with the promt here but I think the result is well worth it

7- Kissing the other persons hand before asking them to dance

2145 words because I have no goddamn chill apparently

Finally an excuse to write some wallflower Taako stuff thank thank

Taako is many things, a performer is not one of them. Above all else he’s a brother first, devoted to his sister. He’s a chef second, perhaps not professionally anymore more but cooking is a second nature, and a wizard third. He’s acquired other titles over his years of travel. Ties he would consider more distant, and less defining of himself like ‘mentor’ or “linguist’ or ‘hero’ or other silly shit like that, but performer is a whole nother ballpark. He’s a celebrity, a personality more than anything else. He puts up a good front of a charming socialite, but that’s more deception then performance.  He’s not an actor, and he’s certainly not a dancer.

Tears dried after a sentimental and blessedly short ceremony, the whole of the Fangbattle wedding party relocated over to Merle’s beachfront property for a rouqus reception. Taako’s gotta applauded the old dude’s keen eye for location, the venue is gorgeous. A little pub and grill built on an otherwise untouched strip of white sand beach, Taako can hear the crash of waves against the shore from here. Somehow they’d managed to cram everyone up on the back deck. A band, lead by Carey’s brother and a few of his other bard friends play a loud, jovial tune over the rush of the receding tide, beckoning party goers out onto the dance floor with a melody so enchanting there must be a little magic woven into the measures. Lanterns encircle the whole event, there dim glow casting swaying shadows over the floorboards as the sun starts to dip below the sea, staining the sky deep navy and bright pink. Tables draped in light linen clothes have been pushed out of the way to give the guest more room to dance and golden ivy vines creep up and along the railings of he deck. All in all a pretty classy affair, though Taako could certainly do without the ugly, tacky as hell fantasy tiki torches Merle had insisted on.

Almost everyone has found their way to the dance floor by now, even the most hesitant of guest swayed but the sweet sweet jams Jeremy is busting out on that flute. The brides haven’t left the floor since they stepped on to take their first dance, absolute shedding it out there as Killian dips and spins her newly wed wife with laughter on her lips and tears pricking at the corner of her eyes. Magnus is out there too, stomping around with Angus standing on his feet and clinging to his hands like his life depended on it, the kid looking simultaneously terrified and like he’s having the time of his fucking life. Merle, who'd’ previously been sloppily gesticulating and gyrating in a fucking vomit inducing display is now actually dancing quite nicely with his daughter and son. Equally as sticking to Taako but, like, in a sweet, overly sentimental way now. Despite the sirens call of the music however, Taako has remained dutifully seated at a table just outside the welcoming glow of those horrible torches, picking his nails and watching the laughing masses with an uneasy boredom

Lup had sweep in like storm a few moments ago, snatching up his date and dragging Kravitz out onto the dance floor in what could only be described as the power move of the century. How many liches attempt to assert dominance over the goddamn Grim Reaper via rowdy wedding dancing? Not many, he’d imagine. Taako was in goddamn stitches as he watched his panicked boyfriend get towed along by the sleeve of his jacket by his just recently embodied sister. He had to admit, watching Kravitz fumble along after Lup’s commanding lead through a complex, fast paced dance that had lots of clapping and stomping and lifts was exceptionally entertained. He’d howled with the rest when the embassy of death itself found himself being dipped quite extravagantly by the brazen lich, but halfway through the second song, they’d been swallowed up the by the crowd and Taako had lost them. And now he was just board, edging on ready to pack it up and leave. Big shindigs like this are fun for about the first hour, then Taako starts to get antsy, especially when left alone. He can’t even find Barry or Ren. A little voice in his head tells that he’d be having a much better time if he just got off his ass and went to find someone to talk to but, nice try brain he’s not about to be tricked into making himself less miserable, so you can jot that the fuck down. No, he’s just going to sit here and stew, and shoo Angus away if he tries to ask him to come dance, and dismiss anyone attempts to get him to do something fun until it’s his turned to get dragged out onto the dance floor by Lup and goaded into shuffling along to the music before he snatches up his boo and bounces before the slow jams kick on. Maybe stanch some leftover dessert pie and matching bottle of wine while they make their escape. Maybe split the bottle with Krav then fuck on the couch. Maybe drink the whole bottle by himself in the bath, then fuck Krav on the couch. Probably just go the fuck to sleep with Krav and drink it in the morning. Regardless, all future plans at this point require Kravitz,  but he’s gotta find the handsome bastard first.

He spots the aforementioned handsome bastard as he bursts out of the drunken throng, stubbing his way over towards Taako’s perch. He looks windswept. Hair tousled, locs slowly slipping from his ponytail, shirt coming untucked, laughing breathlessly. The lantern light wraps him a warm, familiar, soft orange glow that highlights the peaks of his cheekbones and deep flush of exhersion that adorns them. Taako’s stomach does a meager cartwheel and the sensation manifests itself in the form of a small, affection curl of his lips.

Openly admiring his boyfriend as he leans against the side of his chair Taako hums. “Lost you there for a second, handsome” he says

Still out of breath, Kravitz offers up a wheezing chuckle an shrug. Sweat dews along his throat and the side of his face. He reaches up with one hand and starts to undo the knot of his tie, slipping it from around his neck.

“Looks like somebody had a good time” Taako comment, leaning forward onto the arm propped up on his knee

Once again, Kravitz answers with a breathless chuckle. “Your family can be quite-”

“Exhausting?” he supplies

“I was going to say, lively” Kravitz says, now stripping off his suit jacket.

He hands it to Taako without having to be asked, which Taako is quite grateful for. As stunning as his spaghetti strap, floral print, easy-breezy springtime jumper is, it does little to protect his bare arms from the chilly sea breeze.

“Well I hope you didn’t tired yourself out there, buckaroo, because cha’boi has plans for the rest of this evening” He drapes the heavy jacket over his shoulders. It warm with the body heat of the crowd, Taako’s surprised Kravitz don’t ditch it sooner.

Kravitz nods, taking the half drunk margarita Taako pushes his way. “Should I be worried?” he asks, then knocks back the drink.

Taako shrugs, “Depends on what I settle on”

Kravitz chuckles.  He rolls up the sleeves of his floral print dress shirt, then offers an outstretched hand to him, palm up in invitation. Taako eyes it wearily.

“You better not be tryin to get me to dance.” he warn, setting his hand tentatively into Kravitz hold.

Kravitz laughs. “You? Dance?”  and here he bends at the waist, taking Taako’s hand in both of his and kissing each ring clad knuckle irreverently. “I wouldn’t dream of it” there’s a cheeky grin plastered to his face. Taako rolls his eyes in a well intention way under the other man’s overzealous swagger. “Mind accompanying me for a breath of fresh air, love?” he continues.

Taako considers him a moment, the way the firelight catches the flicks of gold in his dark eyes, cracks from which his molten heart of gold push through to the surface. One thing he really appreciates about his boyfriend is how considerate his is without having to be asked. He better attuned with his needs then Taako is himself, and he admires that about the reaper. So he lets himself be pulled gently from his chair.

“Only if you insist, darling,” he croons, pretending like he doesn’t also need a break from the noise and the light and the people.

He she kicks off his strappy, heeled sandals, Kravitz strips off his dress shoes and wads up his socks into them, and together they sneak around to the stairs

They leave the glow and laughter and cheers of the party to their back and steal into the dark twilight that’s settled over the sandy shoreline,Taako’s arm threaded through Kravitz’. The sand is still blistering hot from the heat of the day, burning the soles of Taako’s feet, enveloping his toes as he wades quick as he can towards the waters edge. Together they step over the precipice of dry beach onto the cooler sand the ocean has left wet. Kravitz takes his hand, locking warm fingers around his own like promise and they set off down the coast, teasing as close to the waves as they dare. Every so often a particularly ambitious wave splashes up around their ankles, turning the white sand caked to the tops of his feet brown.

They walk in a companionable silence for a long while. The party to the right of them, the waves and the seemingly endless sea to their left, and the moon and a million billion stars above them, bathing them both in silvery light. If he listens hard enough, Taako can just barely make out a distant melody over the crash of the rolling water and the whisper of the ocean breeze.“Did you have fun tonight Taako?” Kravitz asks, swinging their hands absently between them.

“Hell yeah, my fella” Taako says. “Hard not to with those guys.”

Taako isn’t one for small talk, doesn’t give a shit about pleasantries. So when he asks Kravitz: “Did you? ” it’s out of a genuine interest, and not just something to fill the void of dialogue.

Kravitz sighs with the breeze. “I had a lovely time.” he says. “I just- I love being around people, I love being around your family.” he squeeze Taako’s hand. “Celebrating with them, laughing with them, spending time with you. It’s been so long since I experienced community and affection like this, of being part of- of something so deeply moving as the love you all have for one another, it makes me feel so overwhelmingly- alive.”

Eventually they pause, not wanting to lose the light of the party entirely, and stare out over the dark sea. It seems endless, too big to comprehend, too deep to ever know. Taako’s stomach drops as the scope of it swallows him whole. All at once, he feels far to small and singular. He shuffles closer to Kravitz, whose body is still warm with exhersion and the collective body heat of a dozen or some drunken idiots, sets both hands of his shoulders and press his cheek into the crook of his neck.

“When Lulu and I were kids, she used to stare up at the night sky, just stand there and, uh, fuckin stare at the stars ‘n shit, like she could see her whole damn future if she looked hard enough.” he murmurs. “I couldn't’ do it though, cause you look up there and all there is is this gaping void of nothing and it was like, if you stared at it too long the world was gonna tip over and you’d fall in and get lost in all that nothing. I used to hold her hand, like I could hold her down or something, so she wouldn’t get lost. Fuckin’ uh fuckin dumb as hell right?”

Kravitz kisses the back of his head. Taako closes his eyes and leaned the full weight of his body into his gradually cooling frame.

After a long while, Taako picks up on the small swaying motion of his body. A musician at heart, Kravitz had somehow picked up the music of the party, still in full swing in the distance, and started swaying in time with the tempo. He hums along, the vibrations in his chest and his throat as he continues to move them. Taako doesn’t stop him. Instead he curl closer to his chest, laying his head against his shoulder as the other man reaches around so that both arm lay across his waist, spinning them on the spot. Not quite dancing, but something close.

[noodyl-blasstal]

@blupjeansweek day 3: Moon/Sun

Read on A03 or below: 

Lup stared into the over-bright light of her phone as the clock ticked over to 00:00. It was officially the final day of their site trip to monitor the biodiversity of the McElroy River, and Lup was exhausted. Not because of the extensive hiking, the added difficulty of wading up-stream with heavy gear to check the river traps, or the crap rations the University had packed them off with, no, because of Barold. J. Bluejeans.

Lup hadn’t been sleeping. Barry had made sure of that. He was an evil genius. Sure, she had been the one to suggest that really they only needed one tent, that bringing two was a waste of space and carrying capacity. Sure, she had absolutely done that with the intention of getting to spend more time with him. Sure, she had anticipated maybe sleeping slightly less, wink wink. But not like this. Barry absolutely had to know what he did to her, there was no way he was over there in his stupid denim effect sleep shorts with his stupid shapely forearms and his stupid perfect arse not knowing what he was doing.

She had obviously made a move. Proposing to share a tent for practical reasons on a work trip was obviously a move. There was no way anyone could interpret it any differently. Lup let out a small noise of frustration and flopped herself round so she didn’t have to look at his beautiful face any more. It was stupidly hot, which was part of why she was in this mess in the first place - if Barold could just keep his ridiculous body inside the sleeping bag maybe she wouldn’t want to stare at it so much?

Lup had no idea how things had gotten to this point. She’d been after this guy for years, YEARS. They worked together, they spent most of their free time together, he was invited to all the family events, they were LupandBarry, BarryandLup, but they just couldn’t seem to take the step into getting to kiss about it. How much more blatant could she be? She’d dressed nicely for him, invited him to events, sometimes she even put her hand close to his so he’d barely have to move his fingers at all to be touching hers. What more could a girl do? Lup had to talk to someone about this, she was fully out of ideas, and she was absolutely going to explode.

Lup: 00:03

Taako, I know you’re up, you have to help me. I’m going to die

Ko: 00:03

Is this an actual emergency or is this Barold related again?

Lup: 00:04

It’s an actual emergency… it’s just also Barold related.

The three dots flashed indicating that Taako was typing. Then stopped. They appeared again. Then stopped once more.

Ko: 00:07

Fine. Go on.

Lup: 00:07

I don’t know what more I can do to show him I like him?

Ko: 00:08

I’m going to murder you Lulu. Fully to death.

00:09

You are both nightmare people. I need you to know that.

00:10

But I’m going to give you this one anyway. I know you think you’re being obvious but Lulu, you are not. Please, I am begging you, literally begging you, just tell him. Use your actual words, and actually tell Barold that you are in love with him, and then you can get on with being somehow both more and less disgusting than you currently are.

Lup: 00:11

Ko! I absolutely cannot do that. What if he doesn’t feel the same? What if it completely ruins everything? We work together! We’re writing a paper together! I absolutely need that publication to meet my quota with the university.

00:12

Wait! What do you mean both nightmare people?

00:13

Ko?

00:18

Taako! I know you’re there. What do you mean? Has Barold said something?

00:19

Look, we can’t all get literally picked up by the perfect man at the circus.

00:22

Taako! You have to tell me. You legally have to, it’s twin rules, the sibling police are on their way.

00:24

I hate you.

Ko: 00:25

No you don’t, you love me and I love you too. The only reason Krav and I got together was because I used my words. Now stop messaging me and tell him about how much you want to bone him instead!

Lup spent the next two hours staring resolutely at the canvas of the tent wall and refusing to think about the soft breathing behind her and how nice it would feel if those arms were draped over her waist, that breathing in her ear, her hands in his hair, running up his back. NOPE. Just normal professional thoughts about a friend and colleague. VERY NORMAL THOUGHTS.

________________________________________________________

Barry woke up early in the morning. He was surprised he’d slept at all to be honest, but really he was absolutely exhausted from the extensive hiking, wading up-stream with heavy gear to check river traps, and the crap rations the University had packed them off with. But now he was awake and he was so close to Lup. Why on earth did he agree to share a tent? Well. He knew why he agreed to share a tent. Because he was absolutely incapable of logical thinking when it came to spending time with Lup, and he was obviously never going to pass up a chance to spend the night next to her. But logically, he knew it would be torture.

So now it was, he checked his watch, 3am. He sighed, and lowered his wrist. Lup’s elbow was, for some reason, resting on his head and he wasn’t even grumpy about it, just grateful for the contact. Gods he had it bad. He turned carefully onto his back, trying not to wake her, but accidentally jostling her slightly. Lup muttered something and, to his absolute delight, fully extended her arm around the back of his head.

Lup had her arm round him. Lup’s arm was round him and they were sleeping next to each other and this was definitely probably a crime. Could someone arrest him for this? He didn’t make her do it! …But he was enjoying it. Fuck. HR were going to get involved weren’t they?

The moonlight filtering into the tent softly illuminated Lup, he glanced sideways. She was splayed out, limbs everywhere, taking up the majority of the floor space. He couldn’t even pretend to be angry about it. She looked adorable and her tiny sleepy grumbles weren’t doing anything to detract from that, but he couldn’t stay here. All he wanted to do was stay here and put his arms around her in return, and maybe stroke her hair while she slept, but he absolutely wouldn’t cross a line like that.

Barry had decided this trip was the perfect time to finally tell her how he felt, just get it out there and start looking for another job if he needed to. Lup had been so quick to suggest they shared a tent, and as good as she usually was at lying to University administration, the excuse about saving space didn’t really make any sense because they were parked next to the tent and had a big van for the equipment. Barry had dared hope that maybe, just maybe, it meant something. He’d been giving out signs left right and centre though, and she hadn’t made a single move. He’d worn these denim print cotton pyjamas because he’d thought that maybe she’d been checking him out once when he had them on. He’d packed her favourite snacks for her on the drive up. Heck, on the first night he’d laid out a blanket under the stars and spent a good chunk of the evening star gazing with her. He didn’t know if he could be any more clear short of doing something ridiculous like actually just telling her he thought she was the best person in the world and he was in love with her.

Barry slowly eased open the zip of the tent, grabbing his sleeping bag and sidling out to ensure he didn’t disturb Lup further. He couldn’t resist a look back before he closed the door again, her hair was everywhere and she’d somehow already claimed his pillow. He wondered how on earth she’d managed to stay so contained the last few nights, maybe the sleeping bag had kept her in one place. He chuckled to himself and smiled fondly before closing the door and finding a spot to gaze at the sky and wait for morning. Barry doubted he’d be getting any more sleep tonight.

____________________________________________

Lup woke up confused, she’d definitely been facing the other way when she fell asleep, resolutely avoiding looking longingly at Barry’s sleeping form, but she couldn’t see him. She sat up, realising with a groan that she’d been drooling all over her pillow… actually, scratch that, Barry’s pillow. Fuck! She’d starfished, stolen the entire tent somehow, and he’d had to flee to get away from her. How had she screwed this up so monumentally?

The sleeping bag curled round her foot, so she half fell half ran into the tent door, still a bit dazed from the restless night. Lup took a deep breath, trying to steady herself mentally as well as physically, before unzipping the tent and peering out. Barry wasn’t far away, he was wearing his sleeping bag like a cape and she could see his head nodding now and again as if he was fighting off sleep. He looked beautiful, but she absolutely couldn’t think about that now. Poor Barry was stuck outside terrified because sleeping Lup couldn’t keep her hands to herself. Fuck! Was this going to lead to a meeting with HR?

Lup dived out of the tent and jogged towards him

“Barry? Gods, I’m so sorry! I didn’t realise I was taking up so much space! Are you okay? Please come back into the tent, I can sit outside. I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable, I’m so sor…”

Barry cut her off, looking blearily up at her

“Lup, I’m tired”

Her face flashed with guilt

“Oh Barry, I’m sorry. I should never have suggested we shared”

He shook his head

“No, Lup, I’m tired.” He reached up and took her hand, and tugged gently at it. Lup opened her mouth, then closed it again. He looked so sleepy and tousled and she wanted to run her fingers through his hair and pepper his face with little kisses. He smiled up at her, tugged again, and she folded herself down next to him, her leg brushing against his thigh.

Barry looked at her through bleary eyes, smiling to see her at eye level. He didn’t look upset or angry, he looked like a sleepy boy, a sleepy boy who was absolutely not letting go of her hand.

__________________________________________

Barry rarely did anything without panicking about it. There were at least two conversations happening in his head at all times, and most of them were about how he was making terrible mistakes. He was too tired for that right now though. Instead, he smiled happily at the beautiful elf next to him, slung his arm around her shoulders and pulled her in next to him, swooping his sleeping bag cape round them both.

“Lup?”

“Yeah Bear?”

“Let’s just watch the sun rise”

When Lup smiles back at him and lays her head on his shoulder, Barry just grins, resting his head on top of hers to watch the pinks and oranges begin to boil up on the horizon.

[nautilusing]

ALL THE PARTS THAT MADE ME CRY - EP. 68 EDITION

“Taako, Barry and I got this.  You gotta keep trying, babe.  I know you can do this.”  SHE CALLED HIM BAAAAAAABE listen I’m a sucker for sibling love it annihilates me every goddamn time.  also Lup’s just the best she’s so supportive and great and I love her

“You keep friends nearby, and you ask for help when you need it, Magnus.  And you won’t just be strong.  You’ll be unbeatable.” yeah bye immediately started crying ALSO THIS WHOLE MAGNUS SEQUENCE IN GENERAL WAS JUST....... SO INCREDIBLE.  the way it cut back and forth btw past and present mid-fight and Travis nailing every character beat playing Magnus brash and stubborn and hardheaded and slowly building to that realization that all he has to do is ask for help.   that that’s what strength is.  it’s not taking the big hit every time.  it’s friends.  it’s family.  did I mention I was crying.

WONDERLAND ROUND 3 CUTTING IN AS JOAQUIN STARTS WRECKING SHIT

“Everything’s gonna be okay!  I’ve got magic powers!”

Merle describing how wonderful being a dad is, because it’s 1000% also Clint talking about how wonderful being a dad is, to his real sons.  “To be responsible for a new consciousness, a new soul, and then to help that consciousness and that soul become what it’s supposed to become... it’s the best.”  like, do I have to say it?  CRYIN

“I’m not your Pan.  But you will always be my Merle.”  C R Y I N G

okay seriously though with the fucking music the second I heard the Sloane/Hurley tree song from Petals to the Metal I just fucking lost it dudes I lostttt it.  that was the first thing that ever made me cry in this story, and it fucking got me again, it hit so hard.  HE BROUGHT THEM BACK.  thank you Griffin for my life.

EXCEPT NOT BECAUSE YOU LITERALLY TOOK NOELLE AWAY TWO SECONDS LATER.  do you know how much of a wreck I was at this point.  her telling Carey not to cry and saying she’ll see them again one day and telling Magnus thanks for not ripping her arms off and Griffin bringing back the “hug-shaped robot” description again and HERO TIME BYEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE.  bye.  bye.

I literally had to pause before the next part bc I knew it was the Taakitz reunion and it was gonna straight up murder me

spoiler alert:  it did

“I run over.  I’m already kissing him.”

KRAV TRYING TO WARM HIS FACE SO IT’S NOT TOO COLD FOR HIM THIS FUCKING ADORABLE GODDAMN DORK THAT IS THE CUTEST THING I’VE EVER HEARD ANYONE DO IN MY LIFE

Justin having Taako drop his glamour spell and just..... proving he’s the absolute best at making beyond brilliant character choices of all time.  like, I’ve said this before, I think all the boys have their strengths re: TAZ and areas they excel in more than others but JESUS CHRIST dude, Justin?  Justin is a character master.  he pulls shit out that stuns even Griffin.  GRIFFIN LITERALLY LEANED AWAY FROM HIS MIC AND COVERED HIS FACE IN SHOCK, YOU CAN HEAR IT.  “Oh, God.”

“I just wanted you to know that.  In case that changes... anything.  For you.”

AND LIKE I KNOW TAAKO TURNS IT INTO A GOOF BUT THAT’S ALSO SUCH AN INSANELY BRILLIANT TAAKO THING TO DO?????  because you know he really was worried.  deep down.  and it’s so Taako, to get these tiny glimmers of real emotion and vulnerability before he shoots his walls back up and masks it behind all that sarcasm and irreverence.  like, he puts up a front about not giving a shit about anything, but I honestly think Taako almost cares the most out of all them.  feels the most.  and that terrifies him.  which made this moment even more heartwrenching

also that “I love you, Taako” honestly did kill me R.I.P. me typing from the grave tell it to my ghost

NOT EVEN GONNA TALK ABOUT THE FOREHEAD KISS

(they’re my kryptonite.  they’re my ULTIMATE WEAKNESS GRIFFIN YOU’RE RUUUUUUUDE)

AND THEN HE WANTED HIM TO MEET LUP BEFORE HE LEFT STOP ITTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT

I

am crying

the purple worm music.  actually I’m just gonna go ahead and say that every musical callback made me cry.  every one.

“Saw my boyfriend.”  (I’m never shutting up about this)

THE FUTURE VISIONS.  ALL OF THEM.  LUP AND TAAKO LAUGHING TOGETHER IN A KITCHEN.  MAGNUS AT A PARK WITH ANGUS AND A DOGGO.  MERLE WITH HIS KIDS AT THE BEACH.  CAREY AND KILLIAN CURLED UP ON A COUCH TOGETHER READING FROM THE SAME BOOK (SHUT UPPPP).  LUCRETIA OVERSEEING A LIBRARY BEING BUILT.  

hope.  hope hope hope hope hope.

“I don’t expect you all to forgive me, but--” “I run over and hug her.”  “She is just... she just starts weeping.”

BYE

BYEEEEEEEEEEEEE

LUCRETIA GETTING HUGGED WAS ALL I’VE EVER WANTED GUESS WHO’S WEEPING TOO

also Taako refusing to join them was brilliant.  I’m not kidding, Justin’s so good at this shit.  it makes complete sense for him to do that.  to not be ready for forgiveness.  he might never be.  (I’m pulling for a hug in the last ep tho C’MON TAAKO YOU KNOW DEEP DOWN YOU WANT TO)

“Am I... I’m not gonna lose you again.”  “Never.  Never again, bud.”

MAGNUS GIVING ANGUS HIS KNIFE

TAAKO TRYING TO ONE-UP HIM BY GIVING HIM THE SHERIFF’S BADGE

THEY’RE LITERALLY FIGHTING OVER ANGUS THIS IS THE HAPPIEST I’VE EVER BEEN

“Hear that, babe?  We’re legends.”

never mind, that’s the happiest I’ve ever been

the music.  the Starblaster “for the first time flying into, not away from, the storm.”  the MUSIC.  Griffin breaking the fourth wall and speaking directly to us.  Johann’s song granting everyone, in every plane, inspiration.

“You’re going to have to fight.  And you’re gonna win.”

You’re gonna win.

and I’m

going to cry

let’s go save the world

[serinkdipity]

years 2-4: this is the hardest thing so far, i don’t know what’s going to happen here. i know that this is after ango’s parents lowkey try to murder him because he knows they have the stone and they’re awful people, and then he actually dies on the way to his grandfather’s place but then taako brings him back, yadda yadda. i think after that, ango’s granddad enrolls him in the university or something but he’s in an apartment and mostly by himself because his grandfather isn’t in a fit state to take care of him.

but i don’t want to make this a whole au? like...i don’t want this to be the ipre raising ango, because taako just wouldn’t at this point, and plus it’s inconsistent with the end of the story. i think maybe taako keeps ango a secret, and teaches him magic on the side, kinda a parallel to the bob and it’s weird because he’s already taught ango these spells and he’s never had to reteach ango anything but right now it can’t be helped because of course ango doesn’t remember this repeated timeline and over time taako’s like wow i really miss doing this...fuck

i don’t think taako tells anyone about krav, either. similar setup in that after ango dies and taako gets all those night terrors he goes to find krav and krav ofc course tries to kill him but agrees to a date to learn more about his family and how the fuck they’ve evaded death like ten to fifty-something times, but i don’t think taako tells anyone about kravitz, either. 

wait, no. i think he maybe tells lup. maybe around year three, when he and barry are kinda collaborating - wait, it’s barry, lup, lucretia and sometimes magnus in the house - okay so he tells lup, and  therefore also tells barry, and lucretia’s of course too smart to be kept in the dark, so she ends up finding out too, and they don’t push because it’s good to see taako connecting to people but he’s terrified, of course, because he knows the hunger’s coming he just hasn’t yet realized how soon. 

and after taako’s taught him for a little while, i think he probably introduces ango to lup? and this is maybe during year 3.5 or 3.7 or something -- 

okay, i don’t want it to be that long. four years gone. 2 years moping, 1 year helping ango and reconnecting with krav, 1 year panicking. ango’s the fucking age i make him. god this timeline just keeps shrinking but if the readers can accept ango aging up conveniently for the sake of plot i think i can make it work.

so year 2.7, actually. taako’s starting to think this timeline could work. thye’ve got another seven years fo find the hunger and his family’s getting along and he might inroduce kravitz to them as well, udner the guise of look, bluejeans, i found someone who’s even more goth than you are. 

so here’s the scene: 0-2, the crew stays in the starblaster and then move slowly into a house in neverwinter. taako’s reeling and really not motivated to do anything, unable to ask for help and unable to give it. keeps seeing haunting overlays everywhere. doesn’t get better, like the rest of the crew does, because his hatred for lucretia just keeps burning him and he can’t open up to lup. this culminates in year 2, when - 

ango’s parents get their hands on the philosopher’s stone and he realizes they’re using it to launder money. he tries to turn them in. they kick him out, probably violently, and some trauma happens here. taako rescues him and keeps a very careful distance, still hurting and unable to deal with this kid that he’d come to love and lost, violently. he gets night terrors and, on instinct, goes to krav - the only one with whom he has a clean slate. krav tries to kill him of course because what the fuck taako how do you have so many bounties and you killed sazed?? for no reason? and this is the absolute lowest point, because he’s been rejected by pretty much everyone and can talk to no one. 

i think he goes into neverwinter after this, because lup fucking kicks him outta the house, and ango finds him. he agrees to give him magic lessons and says he’ll come back a couple weeks later and he does and they make him feel better. the upswing in his mood isn’t obvious at first but it’s there. he asks kravitz out on a date to clear the air about the starblaster and keeps teaching ango and keeps it mostly a secret but he maybe also starts reconciling with lucretia. luc never knew proper what she did wrong but she can tell that he considers it unforgivable and maybe, through her intuition, she was never supposed to know. 

he starts to ask her if he made the right choice. she makes him, impossibly, feel better. 

the situation improves. he teaches ango, goes on a date with a man that, in any reality, can  make him feel better, draws honesty out of him effortlessly. he has his sister back, and he’s working with barry to stop the hunger, and they have all the time in the world. their captain is functioning and can say more than just his own name, barry’s not an aimless lich destroyed by the gauntlet. this is all lost in year three when - 

barry makes the discovery that using the relics strengthens their thrall. this makes sense with the canon of the podcast and the timeline taako left behind. the hunger will be here much sooner than barry anticipates, because taako has been using the chalice this whole time. he’s going to rain devastation on his timeline much earlier than he thought and damn it, he’s going to lose them all, again. he throws himself into his work. he pushes away both angus and kravitz because he can’t deal with losing them. how could he forget? how could he let himself forget that everyone will leave?

he tries his hardest to save this timeline, and comes up with nothing. (he can’t, not without the rest of his family.) he opens up to lup, and lucretia by accident, when he loses his temper at her. he hurts lucretia and lup turns hon him because what the fuck, taako, you hurt her feelings, and then taako opens up about the rest of it, about what lucretia did to them - about what lucretia did to her. backtrack on all the progress that lucretia and taako had made throughout these four years. 

lup condemns his choice. 

taako tells himself he doesn’t care. he does, of course. 

the scouts arrive. they have a year. this happens earlier, by the way - this is what prompts taako to shout at lucretia. 

he redoubles his efforts, and in the end, it’s for nothing. angus and kravitz and the rest of his family are concerned. merle and dav returns from exploring faerun to be with everyone in neverwinter. at the end of the year, the nine of them board a silver ship. 

he knows he can’t save them. but he has to try.

fisher is aboard the ship, too. the night before the hunger arrives, fisher shows his vision - paloma’s prophecy, and then seven notes, and ten words. visions from the end of our timeline. 

the hunger descends. he can’t want this, and he knows it. he grabs the chalice and leaps into the bond engine and resets the timeline.

gotta work out the exact mechanisms of the final fight, but that’s about how the middle’s gonna go.