#The Trees' Christmas 2020 Writing Collection

[sfarticles]

There’s still time to bake those cookies....

Here’s a preview of my column that will publish soon.....

Cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, ginger, Christmas trees, stars, candy canes, sleighs and snowmen all are popular flavors and/or shapes of holiday cookies. After Thanksgiving, cookie sheets are dusted-off, and heirloom family cookie recipes are dug up so we can begin to bake and share sweet treats with family and friends. Beautiful tins of cookies travel through the mail to those we love, who are not nearby.  There are families who bake cookies together virtually, too, especially if they are not around the corner.

Although National Cookie Day was December 4, let’s continue the celebration by learning a “bite” about a favorite treat and adding a few new creations to the cookie repertoire.

My research found that the term “cookie” is derived from “koekje,” the Dutch word for “little cake.” According to culinary history, to test oven temperatures before putting a cake in the oven, a small amount of batter was baked — and voila, the cookie was born.

Wikipedia says, “the earliest examples of Christmas cookies in the United States were brought by the Dutch in the early 17th century. Due to a wide range of cheap imported products from Germany between 1871 and 1906, following a change to importation laws, cookie cutters became available in American markets. These imported cookie cutters often depicted highly stylized images with subjects designed to hang on Christmas trees. Due to the availability of these utensils, recipes began to appear in cookbooks designed to use them. In the early 20th century, U.S. merchants were also importing decorated lebkuchen cookies from Germany to be used as presents.”

Speaking of cookie cutters, did you know there is a National Cookie Cutter Historical Museum in Joplin, Mo.?

According to the cookie Elf www.cookie-elf.com:

·      Americans consume over 2 billion cookies a year … about 300 cookies for each person.

·      Half the cookies baked in American homes each year are chocolate chip.

·      Girl Scouts sells 200 million boxes of cookies a year.

·      The largest collection of cookie jars numbers at 2,653 and belongs to Edith Eva Fuchs, a resident of Metamora, Indiana.

·      Massachusetts adopted the chocolate chip cookie as its official state cookie in 1997. Chocolate chip cookies were invented in 1930 at the Toll House Restaurant in Whitman, MA.

·      Biggest cookie: The biggest recorded cookie was baked on May 17, 2003 in Flat Rock, NC by Immaculate Baking Company. It clocked in at 102 feet wide and weighed over 40,000 pounds. Check out the story here https://bit.ly/2Wc0bOz

·      The first commercial cookie to be massed-produced in the U.S. were Animal Crackers, introduced by Nabisco in 1902.

More facts…..

·      Most cookies baked in an hour: According to The Guinness Book of World Records, Frank Squeo and Baking Memories 4 Kids of West Nyack, NY, 6,018 cookies were baked in one hour on December 7, 2019  

·      According to www.statesymbols.com “legislation to adopt a state cookie has been held up for years in Pennsylvania as lawmakers struggled between chocolate chip, Nazareth sugar cookie, and the oatmeal chocolate chip cookie.

So what new cookies will I be baking this year? A few will be from “101 Greatest Cookies on the Planet” by Erin Renouf Mylroie (2020, Page Street Publishing, $22.99). These cookie recipes include many favorite flavors. From New York City Giant Chocolate Chip Walnut Cookies, Nutella Lava Cookies, Peppermint-Dipped Pumpkin Biscotti, Maple- Pecan Shortbread to Hot Cocoa and Marshmallow

Sno-Cap Cookies, the recipes are perfect to make your gift-giving and celebration effortlessly sweet, and, even better, most of the recipes can be prepared in a single bowl to cut down on cleanup.

Now light up the oven, get the kids involved and start baking these cookies from the book! For the recipe for Half-Dipped Peppermint Bark Cookies, visit https://bit.ly/3HESAPm

Dutch Spice Cookies

The author writes, “I’ve been making these Dutch spice cookies since Sailor and West were teeny-tiny. At Christmastime, we like to celebrate the Dutch tradition of Santa Claus. Sailor and West leave their shoes by the fireplace, and ‘Sinter Klaas’ fills their shoes with candy and these Dutch cookies that I bake the night before. It’s also a tradition to get new shoes this night since I don’t like the idea of leaving candy and cookies by used shoes. Ha!”

“You’ll recognize the warm, comforting flavors in these cookies from cookie butter, which has become so popular in the United States. In fact, if you want to make a little cookie butter, just crumble a few of these cookies and puree them with a little butter and condensed milk to form a peanut butter- like consistency. There you go: cookie butter!”

 ½ cup unsalted butter, softened

1 cup brown sugar, packed

1 egg

¼ teaspoon salt

¾ teaspoon baking powder

¼ teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon ginger

1 teaspoon allspice

½ teaspoon cloves

½ teaspoon nutmeg

1 ½ cups all-purpose flour, plus more for the work surface

In a large bowl, mix the butter and sugar until light and creamy, about 2 minutes. Add the egg and stir to combine. Sprinkle the salt, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, allspice, cloves and nutmeg over the batter. Mix for 2 minutes, or until all the spices and powders are thoroughly combined. Gently stir in the flour. Gather the dough into a ball and wrap in plastic wrap. Chill the dough for at least 2 hours, or up to 1 week. About 15 minutes before you are ready to bake, take the cookie dough out and leave it on the counter. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Lightly flour a work surface. Roll the dough to a thickness of ¼ to ½ inch.  You can use a special Dutch cookie cutter, but I like to cut the cookies into rectangles. Simple! Bake the cookies on the prepared cookie sheets, leaving about 1 inch of space between cookies, for about 12 to 15 minutes, or until starting to brown on the edges. Makes 40 cookies.

White Chocolate-Dipped Ginger Crinkles

The headnote says, “Do you ever get invited to those Christmas cookie exchange parties? I never know what to bring. Ironic, right? The best thing that ever happened to me at a cookie exchange was getting this gingersnap recipe. The cookies are gorgeous — full of deep crinkles and a sparkly sugar coating — but wait, there’s more! These pretty Christmas treats are dipped in white chocolate and sprinkled with red and green sprinkles — like they’re all wrapped up for Christmas. Look for holly sprinkles if you want to make these extra festive.”

 ¾ cup vegetable shortening, softened

1 cup granulated sugar, plus more for rolling

¼ teaspoon molasses

½ teaspoon salt

1 egg

1 teaspoon cinnamon

2 teaspoon baking soda

1 tablespoon ginger

2 cups all-purpose flour

8 ounces white chocolate melting discs, or white vanilla-almond bark

Red and green sprinkles

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line three cookie sheets with parchment paper.

In a large bowl, cream the shortening and sugar until light and fluffy. Add  molasses, salt and egg, mixing until well combined. There should be no streaks of egg or molasses. Sprinkle the cinnamon, baking soda and ginger over the dough. Stir until well combined. Gently mix in the flour. Shape dough into ¾-inch balls. You should have about 36 balls. Roll each one in sugar and place on the cookie sheets with 2 inches between each cookie. Bake the cookies for 12 to 15 minutes, or until crinkled and puffed. Cool for 5 minutes on the cookie sheets. Transfer to a rack and cool completely.

Melt white chocolate according to package directions. Dip half of each cookie in the chocolate and sprinkle the dipped side with the red and green sprinkles. Return to rack and let the cookies rest until the chocolate is completely set. If you need the chocolate to set quickly, you can put the cookies in the fridge. Makes about 36 cookies.

Glazed Cinnamon Roll Cookies

The headnote says, “Don’t let the tiny little bit of yeast in this cookie scare you away. You don’t have to do anything special. You can treat it like any other dry ingredient — just throw it in the dough when you add your salt. The little bit of yeast is going to give these cookies a tiny bit of lift and a little bit of the raised dough flavor that you associate with fluffy, homemade cinnamon rolls. They take a little bit of patience since the dough needs to chill for at least 4 hours. I usually just make them the day before. I love these cookies with a traditional vanilla glaze on top, but I also love them with an orange glaze (just add a teaspoon of orange zest and use orange juice instead of milk), or a maple glaze (trade the vanilla for maple extract). These might be my mom’s favorite cookies in the whole book. She loves to tell her friends about them.”

Cookies

½ cup unsalted butter, softened

½ cup granulated sugar

1 egg

½ teaspoon vanilla extract

¼ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon active dry or rapid rise yeast

½ teaspoon baking powder

1 1/3  cups all-purpose flour, plus more for the work surface and as needed

¼ cup brown sugar, packed

2 teaspoons cinnamon

Glaze

 ¾ cup powdered sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 tablespoons milk

To make the cookies, in a large bowl, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the egg and vanilla. Sprinkle the salt, yeast, and baking powder over the top. Mix well. Gently stir in the flour. The dough should be the texture of Play-Doh. Add additional flour as necessary, a tablespoon at a time, until the dough is  slightly sticky.

On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough into a 15-inch-by-7-inch rectangle. Sprinkle the dough with the brown sugar and cinnamon. Roll up the dough, starting with the long edge, into a cylinder. The dough might tear a little, but just keep patiently working and rolling. Any little rips will not show up in the final product. Pinch the dough to seal it tightly at the seam. Wrap the dough in waxed paper and place in the fridge. The cylinder of dough usually stretches a little. I notice that it’s usually about 18 inches long by the time I get it to the fridge. Chill the dough for at least 4 hours, or up to 1 week. When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Slice the dough into ½-inch rounds and place on the baking sheets. Bake until just set and golden brown on the bottom, around 8 to 10 minutes. Prepare the glaze by combining powdered sugar, vanilla and milk until smooth. Dip the top of the cooled cookies in the glaze. Makes about 36 cookies.

New York City Giant Chocolate Chip Walnut Cookies

 1 cup unsalted butter, cold1 cup brown sugar, packed

½ cup granulated sugar

2 eggs

1 teaspoon salt

¾ teaspoon baking powder

¼ teaspoon baking soda

¼ cup cornstarch

2 ¾ cups all-purpose flour

2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

2 cups chopped walnuts

Put the butter in a large, microwaveable bowl and microwave on high for about 20 seconds to soften — not melt — the butter. Stir in the brown sugar and granulated sugar. With a wooden spoon or an electric mixer, beat until light and fluffy. Add the eggs and stir until well combined. Sprinkle the salt, baking powder, baking soda and cornstarch over the dough. Stir or beat for 1 minute. Add the flour and stir very gently until just combined. Fold in the chocolate chips and the walnuts. Shape the dough into 8 equal balls. I like to gather the dough into a giant ball and cut it in half, then divide it in half again, and then again to get 8 semi-equal pieces. Place the balls on a plate and chill, uncovered in the fridge, for 2 to 4 hours. If you chill the dough longer it will take just a few more minutes to bake, which is fine, but be ready to adjust your bake time. While the dough is chilling, preheat the oven to 415 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Transfer dough balls to the baking sheets, spacing them out evenly. Bake one tray at a time on the center rack until tops of the cookies are just starting to brown, about 11 to 13 minutes. You can rotate the pan if the cookies are browning unevenly. Let the cookies cool for 10 minutes on the baking sheet before devouring, or before moving them to a rack to cool completely. The cookies are at their best after 10 minutes of rest when the chocolate chips are ooey gooey, but they will still be delicious after a few days. The chips will be set, but the cookies will still be soft and tender inside. Makes 8 giant cookies.

Recipes and images reprinted with permission from 101 Greatest Cookies on the Planet by Erin Mylroie, Page Street Publishing Co. 2020. Photo credit: Ekaterina Smirnova

Stephen Fries, is a newly retired professor and coordinator of the Hospitality Management Programs at Gateway Community College, in New Haven, CT. He has been a food and culinary travel columnist for the past 14 years and is co-founder of and host of “Worth Tasting,” a culinary walking tour of downtown New Haven, CT. He is a board member of the International Association of Culinary Professionals. Stephen@stephenfries.com For more, go to stephenfries.com.

[independentartistbuzz]

Indie 5-0 with Bad Knights: Holiday Edition

Bad Knights is the alternative and soft rock band who writes music from life’s raw, messy, and beautiful tales. In 2020, circa when-the-world-shut-down, serial nomad Stig found himself at the mercy of boredom. But from this time of introspection and experimentation came an overwhelming drive to do something he’d otherwise never have done – to write some unique, personal rock ’n roll songs that tell the real-life stories of people he had encountered along his many journeys. As the months passed, this never before musician had soon built up a collection of songs, and finally decided to record them at the continued insistence of some mates.

We spoke with Stig of Bad Knights about the holidays, holiday music, and the band’s projects in this special holiday Indie 5-0.

Let’s dive in:

What is your favorite holiday song and why?

‘Let it Snow’ by Frank Sinatra. A hard choice to make with the range of choices, but simple for sentimental reasons and ones of nostalgia. 

What were the traditions around the holidays in your house growing up?

My earliest memories of the holidays involved putting up the Christmas tree, decorations, and having great food for days. Holidays for us would rarely be massive extended family affairs, as most relatives, cousins uncles and aunts were strewn across the world. My personal favourite tradition, would be my attempts to hide behind the couch and catch Santa Claus in the act. Needless to say, there were many unsuccessful attempts before i found out the truth.

If you could record your dream holiday duet with anyone dead or alive what would it be?

Dolores O’Riordan of the Cranberries. As a rock artist with deep baritone vocals, i suppose the ideal duet would be with a singer that compliments the style of music, and of course, and artist who’s music I’ve always loved since i was young. Besides, her iconic voice and aura could make most kinds of music- brighter, better and more colourful. 

What is the first holiday track you ever learned?

Although not in my native language, Feliz Navidad by José Feliciano was my first memory of a holiday song and also the first song I learned to sing along to, despite not knowing what any of the words meant. Over the years, and when travelling, I soon discovered how it was a song that had equal appreciation all over the world.  You just released your debut album, Letters to Everybody. What can you share about the album? What has it meant to you?

Our album, Letters to Everybody, is an enigma of a rock album, unique in the sense that it combines styles, sounds, and music that transcends genres and sub-genres. The songs across the album wash you with waves of nostalgia, cigarettes and whiskey vocals, droning synths, angelic backing vocals and pristine rock instrumentation. But perhaps most importantly, these are stories for everybody with pertinent and deep messages that inspire hope. 

Connect with Stig and Bad Knights via: Instagram / Spotify / Soundcloud / Bandcamp

[annarellix]

A Kelly Society Christmas by S.K. Andrews (The Kelly Society #2)

Vivien Kelly’s Christmas list: Pick up Christmas tree—check, buy Christmas gifts—check, order pumpkin pies—check, save my friend Josh from Krampus the Christmas demon—check! After killing a demon and saving the modern world, paranormal cleanser Vivien Kelly only has three days till Christmas. She scrambles to buy gifts, grocery shop for holiday feasts, and get a Christmas tree. She’s on track when suddenly, her young friend Josh calls the wrath of Krampus, the Christmas demon. Can Vivien buy gifts, cook Christmas dinner, decorate the tree, and also save Josh before Krampus drags him to an eternal hell? Vivien must call upon the most frightening goddess of all for help—Hel, goddess of the underworld.

Universal link for the book on Amazon

My Review: I thoroughly enjoyed this well plotted, compelling, and highly entertaining story: it made me laugh, kept me turning pages, and had fun. It’s the second in a paranormal romance series but it can be read as a stand-alone as the author explains who the characters are and what happened. I loved the Christmas atmosphere, the realistic and well developed characters, and the world building. Krampus keeps some of its original characteristics and it’s an interesting and well-developed bad guy. The author made it a character of the Nordic mythology and referenced that mythology in the world build. As a matter of fact, Krampus is a character of the Alpine tradition and the book talks about Krampus Nacht and how the previous events made this story possible. This mix of different traditions could sound a bit weird but I liked the world building and liked the creative use of different elements joining them in a intriguing setting. I want to read other stories in this series, this one is recommended. Many thanks to S.K. Andrews and Henry Roi PR for this digital copy, all opinions are mine.

The Author. When S.K. Andrews wasn’t swimming in the Pacific Ocean in her hometown of Laguna Beach, California, she busied herself by writing fantasy stories and acting on stage. Having grown up watching Rod Serling’s Twilight Zone and Night Gallery shows on TV, S.K. quickly fell in love with paranormal tales with a message of wisdom and love. Also, being a fan of romance novels and non-fiction ghost stories, she decided to marry the two and write paranormal novels of suspense, adventure, and intrigue with a strong romantic foundation. The sense of adventure inside her came from summers of camping with her family in Mexico (Baja California) and walking along beaches with no other footprints but hers, as her family members unpacked the camper and got ready to collect clams right off the shoreline for dinner. After attaining a B.A. degree in Theatre from University of California, Irvine, and a Professional Acting Certificate from LACC Acting Academy, an idea sparked for interviewing actors to help student actors entering the theatre arena. Her non-fiction book The Pursuit of Acting; Working Actors Share Their Experience and Advice was published by Praeger Publishers. In The Kelly Society book series, S.K.’s heroine, paranormal cleanser Vivien Kelly and her team are in a race to rid the modern world of deadly Celtic creatures. Bay of Darkness and A Kelly Society Christmas (July 2022) are the first two books in the series. Bay of Darkness won the Finalist prize in 2019 from N.N. Light’s Book Heaven and also placed Finalist with Readers Favorite in 2020. The beautiful Hudson Valley in upstate New York is where S.K. calls home.

https://www.skandrews.com https://www.facebook.com/starra.andrews https://www.instagram.com/starraandrews/ https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCP6dzir_I6LhEIWOYCJQFCw?disable_polymer=true

[written-on-the-trees]

Well Spent Weeks Bring Happy Sleep - Yungblud Fan Fiction

Prompt: Wrapped Up Warm.

Warnings: None

Word Count: 1000 words

Summary: Dom is tired after his album's release, and ready to sleep for a week. And his girlfriend is more than happy to join him.

Dom filmed himself falling face down onto the sofa, lifted his head long enough to put it on his Instagram story, simply captioning it with the word ‘night’ before dropping both his phone and his head onto the sofa and closing his eyes,

 It had been an exhausting two weeks. First it had been the build up to his new album getting released, which had been filled with anticipation, until the feeling had been practically thrumming through his veins. He hadn’t even been able to sleep the night before the release; he was too wired. Then the album had been released, and Dom had been fuckin’ ecstatic about the BHC loving all the new songs. He’d spent hours on social media, finding out what people thought, even as he was signing things…and he had been signing a lot of things. Too much, according to some people. A lot of people, in fact: people who thought his record label shouldn’t have pushed him to put out as many limited editions and exclusives that then weren’t exclusives, but Dom hadn’t minded. His fans wanted things, and Dom wanted to give his fans what they wanted.

 …He was tired, though. Tired to the bone, the kind of tired that made his head feel like it was stuffed full of cotton wool and like he was trying to move through knee-deep mud. It had been an amazing fortnight, but the adrenaline, the excitement, and the lack of sleep had all crashed down around him all at once. His mates had gone home, the party was over, and Dom was ready to sleep for a week.

   “C’mon, sweetheart, you don’t want to sleep there.”

 Fingers ran through his hair, prompting Dom to look up to where his girlfriend Clem was perched on the arm of the sofa: “Sleepy.”

 “I know, but you won’t sleep well on the sofa, will you?”

 “…No.” Dom admitted grudgingly, mainly because he was too tired to think up anything that even resembled an argument.

 “So let me help you to bed?”

   Dom moaned…but allowed Clem to haul him off of the sofa. She was right, after all; all he’d get from sleeping on the sofa was a bad back and a crick in his neck, and with Clem pulling one of his arms over her shoulders, it didn’t seem like such an impossible feat to make it from the living room to their bedroom. Between them, they managed to shuffle out into the hallway, then into the bedroom, and over to the bed.

 Clem laughed when Dom flopped down on the bed, groaning like a zombie. She had clearly been expecting him to act like this, as she'd already taken all the blankets off the bed, allowing him to drop straight onto the freshly laundered sheets.

 He happily rubbed his face against the soft cotton of the clean sheets, making a satisfied noise low in his throat, while Clem continued laughing sweetly. Dom didn't mind - he knew that, although she was laughing at him, it wasn't malicious. She didn't think his weirdness was a bad thing: she thought it was endearing. She loved him for it, among other things, and that meant a lot to Dom. As did the way she looked after him when, frankly, he was incapable of doing it himself.

 Dom knew he didn’t make it easy for himself; he spent too much time worrying about things he couldn’t control, and overworked himself until he was shattered. Far too often, he found himself incapable of functioning…but, these days, Clem was always there when he did that to himself, and tonight was no exception. She pulled Dom’s jeans down his legs, leaving him in his t-shirt, boxers, and pink socks, and wrapped a fluffy blanket around his shoulders, before throwing a duvet over the top, all while Dom buried his face in the pillows.

   “Cle-em.” he whined, when it sounded like she was going to leave the bedroom: “Don’t leave me.”

 “You want me to come to bed with you, sweetheart?” Clem replied teasingly.

 Dom, though, was completely honest when he answered: “Always.”

   Clem laughed again, this time sounding more charmed than amused, and although she still left the room, Dom could hear her switching off lights and locking the front door, before she came back into their room, ready to join him.

 Dom happily wrapped the blanket tighter around his shoulders, waiting for Clem to join him in bed.

 He wasn’t waiting long; just a minute later, Clem was sliding under the duvet beside him, dressed only in an oversized t-shirt and her knickers, smiling and rubbing her nose against his playfully.

 Dom cooed in the back of his throat, pulling Clem in close against his chest, wrapping his blanket around them both under the duvet. Clem allowed it, even snuggled closer to him, pressing a soft kiss against his forehead, before he buried his face in her neck, and peppered kisses against all the skin he could reach without moving his head. It was already getting harder to keep his eyes open, let alone move, but before he passed out from exhaustion…

   “I love you, Clementina.”

 “I love you too, Dominic.” Clem replied, sounding a little taken aback by his sudden announcement…but that didn’t stop her from squeezing him in a gentle hug as a response: “You’ve done really well these last two weeks, Dom. I mean it - you’ve been absolutely fucking amazing.”

 Dom smiled sleepily: “I couldn’t have done it without you.”

 “I don’t know about that.” Clem hummed thoughtfully: “You’re pretty amazing at the best of times, but thank you anyway.”

   Dom wanted to argue, but he was too tired. Instead, he pressed just one more kiss against Clem’s neck, before he closed his eyes. Tired as he was, and bundled up warm: wrapped in blankets and with Clem in his arms, it didn’t take long. He was happy as a clam, and out like a light.

 He slept like a rock - and when he woke up, Clem was still under the blankets with him, still bundled up against the cold with him, and sleeping peacefully on.

  He didn’t hesitate to join her.

[missdaviswrites]

Christmas Ficlet Prompts Masterlist

I'm not putting out a new list of prompts for 2021, but if anyone wants to write (or draw or paint or do whatever you want with them), I've collected the holiday prompts from all the lists I've made over the past few years. There are almost definitely some duplicates on here, but feel free to pick and choose whatever you'd like.

1. Bundled up / Peppermint / Holiday Décor / Snowflake / Tis the Season

2. Wish list / Shopping / Star / Wish / Bells

3. Fruitcake / All dressed up / You better watch out / The more the merrier / Chilly

4. Snowball fight / Winter sports / Snowman / Lights / Deck the Halls

5. Mistletoe / Decorating / Believe / Wind / Shepherd

6. Cold / Cozy / Fireplace / Angel / Joy

7. Christmas cards / Candles / Memories / Ashes and soot / Blankets

8. Warming up / Scrooge / Music / Warm bath / O Christmas Tree

9.  Ghosts of Christmas past / Wrapped up / Gift / Festive / Making a list

10. Eggnog / Food and drink / Do you see what I see / Once a year / Candle

11. Christmas carols / Violin / Comfort and joy / Chimney / Dashing through the snow

12. Happy Hanukkah / Winter Wonderland / Gingerbread / Bah humbug / Visiting

13. In front of the fire / Pine-scented / Frost / Family / Storm

14. Elf / Naughty or nice / A beautiful sight / Not a creature was stirring / Hope

15. Seasonal illness / The Case of the Frozen Corpse / Toy soldier / Midnight / Jolly

16. Yule log / Stuck at home / Season's greetings / Baby please come home / Twinkling

17. Scarf and coat / Christmas telly / Warm and cozy / Wonder / Let nothing you dismay

18. Christmas crackers / Favorite tradition / Celebration / Exhausted / Gifts

19. Father Christmas / Travelling / Silent night / Escape / Faith

20. Stocking stuffers / Icicles / Home / Christmas present / Sweets

21. Winter solstice / Longest night / Hopes and fears / Winter / Darkness

22. Party time / Under the tree / Feast / Miracle / Friends and family

23. Family visit / "Did you bring your gun?" / Nightmare before Christmas / Sentiment / Love

24. Holy night / Mittens or gloves / Peace / And to all a good night / Merry Christmas

25. It's Christmas / "I feel the same"

26. Boxing Day / Cleaning up

27. Post-holiday blues / "Thank God that's over"

28. Many happy returns / Toys

29. Bored / Bad weather

30. Auld Lang Syne / Resolutions

31. Last night / New Year

And if you want to read some Sherlock holiday ficlets, here are all the Christmas ficlets I've written since I started in 2015:

Put a Little Love in Your Heart

So This Is Christmas

Welcome Christmas

Christmas With You

Breaking Christmas

Imagine the Christmas Dinners

For even more holiday cheer, check out these collections with all the fics other people have written using the prompts above:

Sherlock December Ficlets

2018 Advent Ficlet Challenge

2019 Advent Ficlet Challenge

2020 Advent Ficlet Challenge

[inevitably-johnlocked]

Hey Steph, hope you’re well!

I was wondering if you knew of any specifically Christmas Tree decorating/decorating for the holidays Johnlock fics. Maybe even where they decorate a side of the tree each and John’s side is perfectly places and neat and Sherlock’s side has mini skeletons or bones or petri dishes or something so specifically Sherlock. They maybe have a little spat on what to put on the top of the tree (only to end up with a deerstalker on there). Or they have little domestics over whether the theme should be traditional green and red or winter wonderland or something?

If not, I may have to write one (or a few) of these as one shots. I may just do that anyway.

Sorry for rambling! Hope you have a wonderful day. Stay safe <3

Hey Nonny!

OOOOOF ahhhhh god my memory is so shoddy... I'll direct you to my Christmas lists, but I will pull out the ones I remember or THINK had Christmas Tree Decorating in them... As for your specific request, OOF don't think I know of any... if anyone has one or wants to write it, PLEASE DO!! <3

CHRISTMAS TREES / DECORATING

See also:

Christmas Fics (Dec. 2017)

Christmas: Oblivious That One or The Other is In a Relationship

Christmas 2019 Part 1 (All Bookmarks XMas and New Years)

Christmas 2019 Part 2 (Marked for Later)

G / T / K+ Rated Christmas Fics (Dec. 2018) (Updated Dec 2021)

Community Recs: Christmas 2020

New Year’s Fics (Jan 2018)

Entanglement by orphan_account (G, 3,218 w., 1 Ch. || Confessions, Physics, Metaphors, Texting, Pining, Christmas, Mind Palace, Sick Fic, Fluff, Humour, Praise Kink) - On Christmas Eve, snow covers London, John visits Harry, and Sherlock and Mrs. Hudson untangle some knots.

Last Christmas by Mazarin221b (T, 3,911 w., 1 Ch. || Fluff, Pining Sherlock, First Kiss) – That Earth-shaking revelation, then, leads to a problem, and one that Sherlock realizes should be solved quickly, before John’s dates turn into girlfriends or boyfriends, because sometimes girlfriends or boyfriends can turn into wives or husbands while your back is turned. Every time John hums happily at the mirror as he shaves, splashes on a little gift cologne Mrs. Hudson bought him for Christmas, Sherlock is drawn back to that night by the fire, and the way John’s touch had made the world stand still.

Tree Topper by May_Shepard (E, 4,017 w., 1 Ch. || Christmas Tree, Christmas Fluff, Drunken Shenanigans, Smut, First Time, Friends to Lovers) – Sherlock and John are celebrating Christmas the best way they know how--alone together, with booze. They've almost finished decorating their tree, but John is determined to find the best way to top it.

Sherlock Holmes and the Case of the Missing Christmas Spirit by SilentAuror (M, 15,002 w., 1 Ch. || Christmas, Domesticity, Post S3, Happy Ending) – John hates Christmas. So does Sherlock, but he suggests that they do Christmas "properly" this year to see if they can't track down its elusive magic and discover for themselves what Christmas is supposed to be about.

Deck the Halls by itsalwaysyou_jw (T, 31,018 w., 24 Ch. || Advent Fic / Multiple One-Shots, Assorted Tags) – One Johnlock ficlet for every day leading up to Christmas. Who is ready for pining, first kisses, established Johnlock, and everything in between? This collection of stand-alone ficlets will have it all.

a good old-fashioned happy ending by darcylindbergh (E, 32,731 w., 26 Ch. || Christmas, Frottage, Comfort, Est. Rel., Fluff, Insecure Sherlock, Frottage, Nightmares, Sleepy Sherlock, Marriage Proposal, Humour, Fluff, Dancing, Cooking, Happy Ending) – For Christmas this year, Sherlock wants to get John something special: something every fairytale deserves. Part 2 of things fairy tales are made of

Goodness Gives Extras by mydwynter (E, 39,629 w., 6 Ch. || Fluff & Angst, Case Fic, Oral / Anal, Humour, First Time, Miscommunication, Snark, Christmas) – Christmas time. 'Tis the season to settle down with a drink, some food and a present or two, and to enjoy the quiet relaxation of the holiday. Instead, there's a case that drags them all over, missing presents, disappointed kids, angry parents, and a freak snowfall. On top of that John has to deal with Sherlock, who is being even more of a prat than usual. He really shouldn't have expected anything different.

The Baker Street Nativity by SwissMiss (E, 99,662 w., 23 Ch. || Nativity! AU || Teacher Sherlock / TA John, Pining, Sherlock POV, UST, Angst, Christmas, Music/Song Fic, Anal / BJ’s, First Kiss / Time) – Fusion between Sherlock (BBC) and Nativity! (2009 movie starring Martin Freeman). Sherlock is a primary school teacher and John is assigned to be his classroom assistant. Together, they are charged with putting on the school's Nativity play. What could possibly go wrong? Part 1 of The Baker Street Nativity Verse

[pulledpurplecurtains]

2021 fic round-up

tagged by @chloebeale @snowonebutyou and @pinkpastels113 ty lovelies <3

this year was a blesssing, especially in the context of this fandom. i had lost my inspiration and motivation to write for months, and then around february i found it again; something that meant the world to me. i delved into the world of one-shots, which may sound silly but when i'd started writing i couldn't see myself writing those. and yet i found so much joy in them; and through them i explored ratings and themes i'd never thought i'd do before, i delved into deeper and more vast characterisation, i challenged myself... and now, looking back at all of my 2021 word babies, i'm so happy i fought through my ever present perfectionism and fluctuations in motivation and wrote them. i also wrote a fic for the first time in non chronological order, which was so fun, i actually managed to write two short one shots, which i'm very proud of bc it is known that i can't write short things, i participated in pitchmas which i've wanted to do for over a year, i started a fic collection which is very fancy and i worte a goddamn original song for a fic which i'm just so proud abt.

it was a good year; and it wouldn't be without all the people who read and like and reblog and comment on my fics. whether you did one or two or all of those things thank you all, in equal amounts. and ofc, what made this year the sweetest were the people i call friends in this fandom; the ones that stuck with me since 2020 and the ones i met in 2021. y'all have enriched my life in many ways, and you are maybe the biggest reason i keep writing. i appreciate and love you all <3

but enough with the ramblings, let's get to them numbers:

Statistics

User Subscriptions: 22

Kudos: 463

Comment Threads: 60

Bookmarks: 72

Subscriptions: 12

Word Count: 57587

Hits: 5193

Fics

wondering if you knew (i was enchanted to meet you) - 11,6k words, T, cacon compliant Softness, beca and chloe through the years

(i'll let you in) and baby, that's when - 8,2k words, T, cacon compliant fluff with much pining (bc beca is an adorable idiot), beca and chloe in NY on New Year's Eve

and right there where we stood, was holy ground - 14k words, M, canon compliant decades down the line, explores beca's journey through the five stages of grief

perched in the dark (you're all i wanted) - 12,8k words, E, cacon divergent angst and my darkest fic to date, explores some very heavy themes and their emotional and mental repercussions

the one with the texts - 1,3k words, G, canon compliant lil fluffy piece taking place in 4th year, inspired by a tumblr post and wenz's insistence for me to write fluff

the one with the pool - 1,8k words, G, canon compliant lil soft and vulnerable piece taking place in 4th year, inspired by my fascination and love for heated pools

i recall holdin' my breath (in front of the Christmas tree) - 7,5k words, G, my canon compliant post pp3 fluffy and soft pitchmas fic with splashes of pining, beca mitchell is still an adorable idiot, original song by me

honorable mention to miss taylor for always inspiring my stories and for providing 70% of my fic titles skdhfksj

i'm pretty sure almost everyone has done this by now, so i'm tagging anyone who hasn't and wants to do this!

[kindahoping4forever]

Under The Christmas Lights // Ashton Irwin

Cass and I are having a blast so we hope everyone has been enjoying Hoe For The Hoe-lidays as much as we are. Her Cal blurb for the day, Baby Please Come Home, is up at @cal-puddies​ and it is one of my favorites from her, so you should definitely check it out if you haven’t already. (And as always, links to all of this week’s blurbs are in the event masterlist below!) Stay tuned tomorrow for our last set of blurbs and our grand finale on Monday: a galaxybrain co-write I guarantee you do not want to miss.

Extra thanks to Cass for helping me figure out what this story wanted to be. The overall concept remained but the structure, character details and tone of it took on a life of its own and morphed drastically as I was writing it. 

Warnings: Established slow burn with Neighbor!Ash, mentions of quarantine, a healthy helping of thirst and sexual tension, implied consensual voyeurism and exhibitionism, mutual masturbation

Word Count: 4048

Hoe For The Hoe-lidays Masterlist

Masterlist // Taglist and Ko-Fi linked above

Let  me  know  what  you  think!

"Quite the festive display you have there."

He stops at the end of his driveway, popping an earbud out as he turns towards your voice. Your next door neighbor, Ashton, stands in his yard, looking at you expectantly as you sit on your front porch, gesturing towards the freshly hung Christmas decorations all along his house.

"Oh thanks! I'm actually not even done. Waiting on a few more pieces to be delivered, really trying to merry things up, you know?" He answers, turning to collect today’s mail.

"Oh really? Everything's already so bright and eye-catching… up so early too," you punctuate your evaluation with a sip of coffee.

He smiles at you and you’re almost embarrassed to say you feel your heart skip a beat. You admit you had a bit of a crush on him when you moved in last year and for a while it seemed plausible you could’ve ended up more than just friendly neighbors. But that hope was yet another thing 2020 took from you.

Even though you were home more because of quarantine, you understandably had to interact with him less and less; gone were the days of “accidentally” baking too many cookies and walking over to offer him a plate or hoping your mail gets misdelivered so he’ll have an excuse to come visit you. These days, your visits were relegated to socially distanced greetings over the backyard fence and happenstance meetings like this.

“Yeah… I know it’s early in the season but I thought after the year we’ve all had, a little extra Christmas cheer couldn’t hurt,” he shrugs. He looks like he’s about to elaborate but then he feels his phone vibrate in his pocket; he apologetically but sincerely says, “Have a good night” and then scurries back to his house before you can get another word in.

It’s another couple of weeks before your next encounter, one night when you’re bringing the garbage can back up the drive and you hear Ash’s voice greeting you from his side of the fence.

“Those decorations certainly escalated, didn’t they?” You ask, amusedly peering up at his colorful house; the flickering icicle lights on the trim were a new addition, along with a big glowing snowflake and star sitting on his balcony.

“Does that mean you like it?” He laughs delightedly, walking up his own driveway. Your brain involuntarily appreciates how he looks with the lights reflecting off the dark wool trench coat he’s wearing; his hair is a lot longer than the last time you saw him, beard much darker and fuller. He looks good. You try not to think about it.

“Very pretty… not anything I would put up, but it suits you,” you comment, hoping your tone landed on the right side of the line between flirty and rude; you’re so out of practice at this, you’re not quite sure.

He takes it in stride. “That’s fair,” he chuckles. “No decorations for you this year?”

“Oh, I’ve got a wreath on my door,” you gesture. “May or may not get a tree. Little touches like that, things just for me; that feels appropriate but full on decorating this year… it just doesn’t feel right, doesn’t feel true to what we’re all experiencing.”

He furrows his brow. “Do you think my decorations are dishonest?” He asks, looking interested in your perspective.

“Not yours specifically, lots of people in the neighborhood are doing the same thing, some started even earlier than you did,” you carefully try to explain. “It just feels like surrounding ourselves with these crazy festive decorations… it’s like we’re working very hard to convince each other, maybe even ourselves, that this year isn’t any different when that couldn’t be farther from the truth… it is different and it feels weird not to acknowledge that.”

You look up, hoping you haven’t offended him, that you don’t see like too much of a grinch; you find yourself surprised at how relieved you feel when he nods thoughtfully as he considers your point of view.

“I actually agree, people are definitely using the decorations as a bit of a coping mechanism,” Ashton states, leaning on the fence as he ponders. “But I don’t think there’s anything wrong with that. I know for me, after spending so much time being upset that I was trapped in my house this year, I figured I should do what I can to make my house feel happy for once. Especially if I’m gonna spend Christmas alone in it.”

You marvel at how despite the heavy turn the conversation has taken, his face never darkens, his warm and cheerful aura never falters. “Oh. I actually hadn’t thought of it like that,” you admit, playing with the drawstring of your hoodie, wondering why you care that you’re feeling vulnerable around him. “I’ll be alone this year too. I guess it just doesn’t feel like Christmas to me so I don’t like reminding myself that it is that time of year. If that makes sense.’

He gives you a sad but empathetic look. “I totally get it. I felt like that for most of the year… birthdays, seasons changing… I didn’t want to admit any of it was happening,” he shares. “But I don’t know… not to seem like I have it all figured out, but if we can’t change how we react to the environment we’re in, I think there’s something to be said for changing the environment itself. It’s important to acknowledge what you feel but also letting in even a little positivity can do wonders.”

You offer him a soft smile, letting him know you appreciate his encouragement. “Even just seeing the wreath on my door every morning is a nice moment,” you confess.

Ash smiles back and you feel warmer than if you’d gone inside and cozied up in front of your fireplace. “See? A couple strings of lights, a little tree. Maybe break out with that big yellow Minion you put out on your lawn when you moved in last Christmas,” he teases, lightening the mood.

“OK, first of all, it’s not a Minion, it’s Woodstock from the Peanuts, thank you,” you laugh, shaking your head. “I’m surprised you remember that.”

“Well, it was quite the first impression,” he shrugs and you can’t help but notice how broad his shoulders look in that coat.

You lay in bed that night, the night’s events on a loop in your mind; you ended up standing outside and chatting over the fence for more than an hour. It was nice and stirred a sense of normalcy in you that you hadn’t felt in a long time. It stirred other feelings in you as well but you knew there wasn’t any sense in dwelling on that since it’d be a long time before either of you would be able to do anything about that.

A few days later, you hear a muffled murmur that sounds a lot like your name while you’re washing dishes; you look out the kitchen window to see Ashton waving at you from his patio. He’s shirtless and sweaty, having clearly just finished his afternoon yoga session. Not that you had taken to timing your kitchen chores to coincide with his workouts.

You signal to him to give you a minute and then you head out the backdoor to chat. “What’s up?” You say as casually as possible, willing yourself to keep your eyes trained on his face and not the sweat dripping over his defined muscles or how low his athletic shorts are hanging.

“Your house is looking nice,” he gestures at the colored lights you recently hung around your window frames. “Little touches, just for you, like you said. I like it.”

You beam at him, impressed that he remembered your words from the other night. “You were right, I do feel a bit brighter having put those up,” you share, stuffing your hands in your hoodie pocket to keep from fidgeting, thinking about how much you’d like to brush the curls out of his eyes.

“I’m glad to hear it,” he replies jovially. “I actually have something for you.” He gestures for you to back up as he ducks inside his backdoor, retrieving the package off his kitchen table; he walks back out and smiles when he sees you’ve also turned around so he can surprise you. He sets the box over the fence and returns to his patio; he waits a beat longer than necessary to give you the all clear, he had to give himself a second to appreciate your ass in those leggings.

You spin around and see a box containing an inflatable light up Minion wearing a Santa hat. “Are you kidding me?!” You burst out laughing, picking up the gift to inspect.

“Figured Woodstock could use a buddy,” he laughs, shrugging. “Ordered it when I came inside after our talk the other night, just in case you changed your mind about decorating.”

You feel yourself blush. “Wish I could offer you more than a smile and a thank you,” you blurt, before realizing how forward that sounded. “I mean, like a hug or dinner or something…” You laugh nervously and look to see him trying and failing to hold back a devilish smirk.

“Well. When the time is right, I’d love to take you up on that offer… for the hug or the something,” he flirts.

The next day, you make Christmas cookies and leave some in his mailbox when he goes for his morning run. When he comes to tape a thank you note to your front door, he catches a glimpse of you through the window, decorating the tabletop Christmas tree you bought for yourself and you share a nice moment.

You gave him your phone number that time pre-lockdown when he went out of town and you watered his lemon tree; he finally starts using it, texting you on and off throughout the day and it’s nice to feel like you finally have someone to share with.

It’s when you’re in bed at night, texting away, that you always wish you could share even more with him. Your phone says he’s typing a response and you turn over to stare across the room at your bedroom window, the one facing his bedroom window. His curtains are drawn but you can see the soft glow of a bedside table lamp illuminating the room; you wonder what color the lamp is. Wonder if he sleeps on the left or right side of his bed. Wonder what he’s wearing while he’s typing his messages to you. If he’s wearing anything at all. Wonder if he wants to ask you the same thing. You lay there, wondering, until your phone buzzes again and the cycle continues.

You carry on like this for the next couple of weeks, collecting feelings and building tension. A few days before Christmas, you hurry outside to collect the packages that were just delivered by the mailbox, rushing to bring them in before the holiday Zoom party you have planned with friends.

You stop to text your pals you’ll be a few minutes late when you hear a sharp gasp behind you. You turn and see Ashton at the end of his driveway, eyes poring over you in the fitted green velvet wrap dress you’re wearing.

“You sure cleaned up for the mail delivery?” He jokes, trying to recover how clearly affected he is by the sight in front of him. You realize it’s the first time in months he’s seen you in anything besides hoodies and lounge pants.

You laugh, walking to the fence. “I have a Zoom party to attend but I didn’t want these boxes sitting out here all night,” you explain, instinctively starting to touch your face out of nervousness before stopping yourself for the sake of the dark red lipstick you have on; you’re not used to wearing makeup these days.

“Well… you look fuckin’ incredible,” he breathes, making no attempt to disguise the way his gaze is travelling up and down your body. He runs his hand through his hair and clears his throat, willing himself to move on. “I won’t keep you, then. I just wanted to ask you something.”

You lock eyes with him and feel your heart speed up; usually you’d have a quippy reply to shoot back to him but today, all you can think of is the heat you feel between the two of you. Instead, you nod attentively, trying your best to act like your mind isn’t distracting you with daydreams of walking around to his side of the fence and leaping into his arms.

“I know we’re both alone for the holidays… wish I’d thought of this sooner, so we could’ve done something about Christmas, actually… but say if we were to properly quarantine - you know, like, no outside contact at all quarantine - would you want to spend New Year’s together?” He’s speaking quickly, rushing it out as if he’s afraid he’ll lose his nerve and yet he presents his proposal with an assurance that almost hypnotizes you.

You can’t keep from grinning ear to ear but you still try to play it cool. “That could be fun,” you answer, grateful. You joke, “God, I can’t remember the last time I wasn’t at a party for New Year’s, what do people even do to celebrate at home?”

Without missing a beat, he suggestively replies, “I’m sure we can think of something.”

You have fun with your friends on Zoom but in the back of your mind you can’t stop thinking about the way that Ash looked at you, the honest hunger in his eyes. You keep your curtains open much later than usual, hoping to catch a glimpse of him, wondering if the lights around the window will catch his eye and he’ll stop to try and catch a glimpse of you.

New Year’s can’t get here fast enough as far as you’re concerned but time feels like it’s moving slower than ever. Christmas finally arrives and you wake up bright and early to Zoom your family to open the presents they sent you. Afterwards, you decide to give yourself the gift of going back to sleep; when you wake up a few hours later, you tidy up the living room, gathering the trash bags of torn wrapping paper and ribbons to take out to the garbage.

You step outside and note Ashton isn’t on his patio like he is most mornings; you’re just about to head back inside when you hear a warm “Merry Christmas” from over the fence.

You turn to see him wearing a smile brighter than his extravagant Christmas lights display and yours combined. “How’s your morning?” He asks earnestly.

You smile back. “It’s good! Slept in a little, Zoomed with the fam. Lowkey but nice.”

“Ohhh. That’s why you weren’t at the window this morning,” he muses. You look at him quizzically and a sheepish look washes over his face. “I’ve maybe noticed that you seem to like tidying up the kitchen around the same time every morning… maybe sometimes when I’m ready to start my stretches, I’ll check to see if you’re at the window yet. Maybe sometimes if you aren’t there yet, I’ll wait.”

You feel yourself flush, flattered. “Here I thought I was being voyeuristic when all along you’re just an exhibitionist,” you smirk.

He chuckles knowingly. "And you're leaving your curtains open all hours of the night for aesthetic reasons?"

You're surprised you don't feel embarrassment, just a sense of pride and overwhelming desire. "You're welcome," you say coyly.

Completely devoid of self-consciousness or hesitation, Ash says seriously, "I'd give anything to come over there and kiss you right now. Touch you. Just feel you."

Your breath catches but you manage to get out, "Six days. Just gotta get through this week. Somehow."

The interaction plays over and over in your mind throughout the course of the day: the confident way he told you he wanted you, the way his gaze seemed to devour you entirely, the simultaneous relief and ache you felt knowing that the yearning that’s been threatening to overtake you has him floundering too.

Six days is a long time, especially when you’ve not so much as grazed another person since the beginning of the year, not to mention you’ve been waiting to get to this place with Ash for over a year.

The idea enters your mind while you’re cleaning up your dinner dishes, peering out the kitchen window he’d freely admitted to using to perform for you. You slip out to the garage, finding the box with your usual Christmas decorations much more easily than you expected. You glance at his living room window, ensuring he’s occupied before heading up to your bedroom to set your plan in motion.

You add as many strings of lights to your bedroom window as you can fit: colored ones, white ones, blinking ones, the ones that get slowly brighter and then dim back down. You stand back and nod to yourself, pleased with your work. You’d certainly call this eye-catching.

You feel more excited than nervous when you see it’s already around the time that Ashton usually heads upstairs for the night. You see the light in his room go on and you wait impatiently, just long enough for you to wonder if you didn’t go far enough with your display. You jump as your phone buzzes on your nightstand with a text message.

“Feeling extra festive tonight?”

You chew your lip, weighing how to play this. “Wanted to be sure I had your attention.”

He types for what feels like a lifetime but all he ends up responding with is: “Oh?”

You push yourself off your bed and go stand in front of your window, responding, “I think I’ve figured out how we get through the next week.”

You see him through his window, shirtless and in his boxers, laying on the bed with his phone. He reads your message and runs his hand over his beard, lost in thought; his head turns towards the direction of your house, pondering, when he notices your illuminated figure. You see him sit straight up and stare in disbelief as it dawns on him that you’re standing at the window, dressed in a lace lingerie set that has him almost feeling dizzy from how fast the blood is rushing to his cock.

He walks over to his own window, needing a closer look; he groans as he takes in every detail: how the red color of the bra and panties contrasts against your skin, how the black lace trim accentuates your curves, how the strappy detailing of the underwear present you as a Christmas gift meant just for him to unwrap. The lights around your window cast a glow around you, making you look like even more of a holiday fever dream come to life.

His eyes meet yours and you hold his gaze as you run your hands slowly down your body; you start by trailing down your neck to the straps of your bra, tracing along the lace outline with your fingers. You give your breasts a firm squeeze as you run your palms over the cups, stopping to use your thumbnail to tease your nipples until they poke through the thin material. Your fingers dance down your torso, swirling around the lines of your belly, pulling at the waistband of your bottoms. You tauntingly skip over your hips entirely, moving to caress your thighs.

Your phone buzzes again and you pause your show to reach for it. “Wish it were me,” Ash’s confession reads.

“In my mind, it is,” you reply, sitting your phone aside to dip into your panties. You lick your lips, in awe of how aroused you are, how aroused you’ve been since you decided to create this situation.

Ashton gulps and if he wasn’t so blinded by lust, he would’ve laughed at how audible the sound was in his ears. He wants to text you back, wants you to know how he’s dying for this week to pass so he can ravish you with the attention you deserve, the attention he should’ve given you a long time ago. But he also doesn’t want your hand to stop moving inside your underwear, so he waits.

You spread your wetness around, teasing yourself slowly. You considered bringing your bullet vibe to the window with you but you figured you were going to be overwhelmed enough and you weren’t going to need any help getting off. You close your eyes as you trace around your clit, not allowing yourself to put much pressure on it just yet, not willing to risk having this be over too soon.

He sees you throw your head back in pleasure, eyes fluttering shut, lips swollen from sucking them between your teeth and he can’t take it anymore. He pulls his cock out through the hole in his boxers and starts stroking, exhaling in relief at how instantly good it feels; he spits in his hand to ease the friction at first but it only takes a few tugs for precum to start trickling from his tip. He groans and pumps faster, knowing this won’t take long.

You press a fingertip inside yourself and moan a lot louder than you expected; you open your eyes and notice his stare remains unwaveringly focused on you, only now his hand is working his cock. He moves rapidly up and down his shaft, seemingly unconcerned with taking it slow. Part of you wishes his movements would slow down so you could get a better look at his dick but you also love that he’s seemingly so turned on by the thought of having you that he needs immediate gratification.

He tries to keep up with you, matching you stroke for stroke as you continue working yourself up, hand speeding up inside your panties, hand pawing at your clothed breast. His rough grip catches on one of the veins running down his cock and he chokes out a strained curse; he notices your mouth keeps forming a perfect O shape as you react to your self pleasure and he lets out his own whimper as he imagines how heavenly your sounds must be.

“I can’t wait to hear you when I make you cum for me.” You softly whine as you read his latest text. You’re nearly there and your head is spinning at the deliberate nature of his words: “When” he makes you cum “for him.” You rub hard at your clit and feel that familiar burning ache building in your core. You swear your wetness increases tenfold as you feel the pulsing begin.

Ashton’s cock leaps in his hand as he witnesses your body tense and shake as your orgasm washes over you; he notices your lips murmuring something and the thought enters his mind that you could be saying his name. He hopes you are.

You’re still waiting for your heart rate to settle, realizing there’s no way it will as long as you’re watching Ash pull at his cock like that. One hand flies over his length, the other firmly clutching his balls; his hips start to move, fucking into his hand as he nears the edge. You’re captivated watching his abs tense, fluttering with intensity until suddenly they’re being coated with cum. The ropes streak his skin and you decide it’s too soon to text him to share how badly you want a taste.

He hangs his head in exhaustion, briefly ducking away from the window to grab a tissue off the dresser; he cleans himself off, tucks his cock back in his boxers and finally looks back up at you. You smile softly at each other, though you’re not sure of the tone; it’s not exactly shy and it’s not entirely wistful. Whatever it is, it’s nice. Hopeful? Satisfied. For now.

You text him, “It’s after midnight now. 5 days.” 

You see him shaking his head, smiling as he types. “Still too far away. Same time tomorrow?”

You grin, shooting off your response before blowing him a kiss goodnight. “Still too far away. Meet you here after yoga tomorrow.”

————-

Taglist issues again so my apologies if you get notif’d more than once (or not at all)

@mymindwide​ @suchalonelysunflower​​ @pxrxmoore​ @loveroflrh​ @ghostofmashton​ @sexgodashton​ @feliznavidaddycal​  

@castaway-cashton​ @ashtonlftv​ @cashtonasfuck​ @megz1985​ @ashdork-irwin​ @angelicfluffs​ @findingliam-o​ @youngbloodchild​  @irwinsbetch​ @everyscarisahealingplace​

@wiildflower-xxx​ @metalandboybands​​  @realisticnotes​​  @makeamovehemmings​​ @golden166​​ @burstintocolor​​

@mfartzzz​​ @babyoria​​ @petunias-pet​ @youngblood199456​​ @notinthesameguey​​ @seanna313​​  @zhangyixingxing1​​ @stardust-galaxies​​  @zackoid​​

@lovelybonesetc​​ @xsongxbirdx​​ @justhereforcalum​​   @ashtonangst​

@laura66sos​​ @calumrose​​ @karajaynetoday​​  @pilunb​​ @jazzyangel242​​ @babylon-corgis​​  @heyheyhaleyd​​ @calmsweetcreature​​

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@trix-arent-for-kids @uh-huhh-honey @tobefalling @aladyofalbion @likehuhdude

@curlycalums​​  @cxddlyash​​  @reddesert-healourblues​​

@fedorable-killjoys​​  @iamcalumswhore​​   @i-like-5sos​​   @Too-et-moi215

@photochic18  @kouska901 @Indermeow  @dantord

[let-me-luve-you]

12 Days. 13 Gifts.

Jensen Ackles x Reader

Summary: Jensen has a surprise for you on Christmas day and he hides it through the 12 Days of Christmas.

Warnings: mentions of smut, making out, pure fluff, talks of religion because of the songs meaning, umm I think that’s it but if there is more and I missed it please let me know since I wrote this over a week.

Word Count: 6527

A/N: I know that the 12 Days of Christmas technically start on Christmas day and go on until the new year, but I did it before Christmas and have it end on Christmas. This kind of got a mind of its own once I started writing it. I didn’t plan for it to be this long but once I started writing, the words just flowed. I looked up the meanings on my own. I tried to keep most of the religion out of it so people would be comfortable reading it so I briefly mention the meaning and then make it what Jensen thinks of the reader. I didn’t proof read this so if there are mistakes, I’m sorry. This took me days to write with a 4 day break in-between due to working 14 hour days. I hope you guys enjoy.

@spnchristmasbingo​

MASTERLIST

SPN Christmas Bingo 2020

Jensen was away filming Supernatural. They decided to do an extra episode before winter break so they wouldn’t have to come back until February. You missed him like crazy, but you were just grateful you were to get a little bit more time with him in the new year.

You worked for Gen so you were able to spend a lot of time with someone that understood missing their significant other. You also loved spending time with the little ones and helping Gen with her and Jared’s three children.

You were sitting at home doing some housework when you heard the doorbell. You made your way down the stairs to the front door of yours and Jensen’s shared home. You looked through the peephole and saw a delivery truck leaving the driveway. You opened the door and saw a small box.

Taking the box to the kitchen, you opened it and saw a tree shaped box full of plastic pears and one partridge in the middle. You pulled the box out and set it on the table. You looked back into the bigger box and found a note. You started reading,

On the first day of Christmas, my true love gave to me... a partridge in a pear tree.

I’m sorry I’m not there to join in the Christmas decorations and Christmas activities. I can’t wait to come home and see how beautiful your decorating is. Save some decorating and activities for me. I love you and can’t wait to see you.

J<3

You smiled as you looked pack over to the present your boyfriend gave you. You walked over to the table you weren’t going to decorate because you were going to use it for the buffet on Christmas day when all yours and Jensen’s families come. You set up the box to lean against the wall so people can see it when they come over. You laid the note in front of it, preparing to save it for the rest of your life.

The next day, you had gone out with Gen and the boys to a local farm. Gen was doing a piece on a healthier lifestyle and where it starts. You had your camera with you getting pictures of Tom, Shep, and Odette interacting with each other while they did the activity the tour guide set up. Soon Gen joined them and you grabbed pictures of that too. After getting the pictures you needed, you put your camera up. Gen took that opportunity to ask you about the package Jensen left for you.

“Did he really send you a gift based on the 12 days of Christmas?” Gen asked.

“Yeah. I was so surprised. I had talked to him that morning and he didn’t let anything on that he was sending something.” You replied. Smiling to yourself as you thought about the thoughtful gift from Jensen.

“Do you think you’ll get the other eleven days?” She asked genuinely.

“I’m not sure.” You said. The kids looked tired and came over asking if it was time to go home. “I guess I’ll find out when I get home.” You laughed as you put Tom on your back and then picked up Odette as Gen picked up Tom. All three kids drained of any energy.

After helping Gen take the kids in, you said your goodbye and headed back to the house. When you pulled in the garage you noticed a package on the front porch. You eagerly walked from the garage to the front door to get the package. Walking back to the kitchen, you cut open the box and saw two turtle doves with their heads touching. You picked them up to admire the beauty of the glass piece. You gently set it down on the counter and looked in the box for the second note.

On the second day of Christmas my true love gave to me... two turtle doves.

Did you know turtle doves symbolize friendship and love and you are supposed to give it to a special person? And as long as both of us keep our turtle doves, we will be friends forever? You’re my best friend so I give the other one to you. Mine is attached to yours so we can keep them safe. I plan on staying best friends for life so don’t lose yours. I love you baby. See you soon.

J<3

You happily picked up the two turtle doves and the note and smiled as you set them next to the pear tree. You grabbed your phone and texted him “safe and sound. Love you.” Jensen quickly replied back with the heart eyes emoji.

You loved your gifts so far. You loved that the note explained what it symbolizes. You didn’t know that, you just knew the song. You hoped you would get more incite on the other days as well. That is, if you get more packages.

The next day, you were editing Gen’s photos when the doorbell rang. You weren’t expecting anyone so you assumed it was a package. You quickly hopped up from the computer and ran to the front door. You were already wearing a giant smile. As you opened the door you saw three giant boxes. You gently brought them into the foyer of the house. Too big and too heavy to move throughout the house. You opened the box that was labeled “box one.” You saw a giant iron french hen in the box as well as a note on top.

You grabbed the note and set it on the table by the door. You decided to pull out the french hen to see what it looked like. You looked it over and noticed Faith was engraved in the side.

On the third day of Christmas my true love gave to me... three french hens.

Faith. Hope. Love. These are what the three french hens represent. I have faith in us. I hope you’ll love me for the rest of your life. And I love you more than words can describe.

Also sorry these are so big. I couldn’t find smaller ones. I figured these would look good in the yard.

J<3

You laughed at his little p.s. note. You went to put the note on the table with the rest. You grabbed the first hen and took it outside. You decided that putting them next to the walkway would be the best place until you get out the spring yard decorations.

Another day at home called for deep cleaning the guest rooms and the guest bathrooms. Only your parents and Jensen’s were staying at the house. Both of your siblings and their families were going to be staying at a hotel.

You had been cleaning for hours. You wanted a break and it seemed like fate wanted me to have a break too. Just as you were walking to the kitchen, the doorbell rang. Walking to the front door to get day four of gifts, you opened it and grabbed the package. You finished your walk to the kitchen and set the box on the counter. You walked to the fridge to grab some water before returning to the package. Today, you were tired, so you were a little slower on opening the package.

Once you had the box open, you saw a statue of four black birds. There was a button located on the side. You pressed it, kind of scared of what sounds it was going to make. You laughed as you heard a variety of bird sounds. You looked for the note and pulled it out of the box.

On the fourth day of Christmas my true love gave to me... four calling birds.

I did my research for this one and not much is on it. There are a lot of representations. Anyways, here are some blackbirds to join the collection that I hope you’re keeping. I love you. See you a lot sooner than you know.

J<3

You laughed at his note, just picturing him struggling to find the significance of the calling birds. You did as you had done before and set the statue and the note down next to the previous gifts. You smiled at your little collection you had built. You just knew this was going to be something you set up every year at Christmas. Notes and all.

The following day at the Padalecki house, you were helping decorate the tree with the boys and Odette while Gen went to get last minute Christmas gifts. You let the kids decorate it while you took photos. You were trying not to laugh as you noticed only the bottom half of the tree decorated. You prayed that Gen and Jared would leave it like that.

You heard the garage door and assumed it was Gen coming home. You laughed as Tom and Shep argued over where the reindeer ornament went. Odette walked towards the box of ornaments but stopped short and looked at something behind you.

“DADDY!” She yelled as you turned around to see Jared standing there with a smile on his face. He dropped his bag and bent down to pick up his daughter.

“Hey baby girl. Having fun decorating the tree?” He asked. She nodded her head and smiled at Jared. “Are you guys being good for Y/N?” All three answered yes in unison. You laughed.

“Have a good trip?” You asked him as he set Odette down. She ran off to join her brothers again.

“I did. Jay’s at home. I know you haven’t seen him in a while.” He said as he walked over to give you a hug and a kiss on the head. “Why don’t you go home? I can take over from here. I may be needed for the branches they can’t reach.” You both laughed as you looked at the naked top of the tree.

“Thanks Jare. Has Gen talked to you about coming to dinner tomorrow night?” You asked as you packed up your camera.

“She did. We figured we could come a little early to help out with whatever.”

“You can come early but you aren’t allowed to help.” You laughed as he frowned. “I have most of the decorations up. The rest are left for Jensen to do tonight. I just want some good ole family time. I haven’t seen you in forever and I know the kids want to see their Uncle Jensen.”

“We love Uncle Jensen!” Shep yelled.

“Is he here?” Tom asked.

You shook your head no. “No T, he’s not. But you will see him tomorrow. If you’re good for your parents tonight and tomorrow, I’ll have some cookies for you guys to decorate after dinner.” All three yelled in celebration.

“We’ll be good. Promise.” Shep said as he ran over to give you a hug. “Bye aunt Y/N. Love you.”

“Love you to Sheppy. I’ll see all of you tomorrow.” You said as you smiled at Jared and made your way to your car.

The drive to your house was short seeing as Jensen and Jared wanted to live close to each other. When you drove up, you didn’t see a package on the porch. You did smile though when you saw Jensen’s car in his spot in the garage. You walked into the house to see five small boxes on the coffee table with Jensen sitting on the couch next to them.

You ran over and hugged Jensen’s neck hard. “I missed you so much. Did you have a good flight?”

Jensen dug his head into your neck. You heard a mhmm as a response before you felt a kiss on your neck. He pulled back and gave you a soft kiss on your lips. “I missed you baby.” He kissed you again. “Can’t wait to spend the break with you and only you.”

“You do realize in a week's time we will have a full house of people.” You laughed. He shrugged before smirking at you. He turned to look at the gifts laying on the coffee table. You hopped off his lap and sat next to him, reaching for the boxes.

You picked them up and realized they were ring boxes. You opened it up to see a gold ring with a goldfinch bird on it. You pulled it out to observe it. Jensen was observing you. You had a huge smile on your face. You quickly opened all of the boxes and saw each ring was similar but the bird was positioned differently on each.

“These are beautiful Jense. Now where’s my note?” You asked eagerly. Jensen laughed as he handed it to you before he wrapped an arm around you and pulled you close.

On the fifth day of Christmas my true love gave to me... five golden rings.

The golden rings represent the yellow rings around a pheasant’s neck or a pretty little bird known as a goldfinch. A goldfinch symbolizes the importance of positivity, the value of happiness, and the simplicity in life. You are the most positive, happiest, and simplest person I have ever met. I am lucky to know you. You are my goldfinch. I love you.

J<3

You smiled at Jensen before you grabbed the rings and walked to the table that was holding all of the other gifts. You laid the note in front of it. You smiled as you looked over the four days worth of gifts that were in front of you. Jensen wrapped his arms around your waist and pulled you into his chest.

“I love how you have it set up. I love where you put the hens.” He kissed your temple and squeezed you tighter.

“This is such a great idea. I love the thought you’ve put into it.” You turned in his arms. You placed one hand on his chest and the other on his cheek pulling him towards your lips. You placed a loving kiss on his lips before looking into his eyes. “Thank you for this. I love it.” Jensen smiled at you before he pulled you back into a kiss.

The next morning you woke to the smell of food. Jensen was sitting next to you with a tray full of breakfast food.

“What's all this?” You asked as you sat up.

“You’ve been doing so much around the house, plus working for Gen and helping her with the kids, I thought it's just a small thing I could do for you. And your cooking dinner tonight, so you deserved to spend the morning being pampered.” Jensen said softly. “I also have your sixth gift.”

He handed you a box. You opened it up and saw a glass goose. After picking it up you saw a glass nest with glass eggs in them. You gently put the goose back in the box and pulled out the note.

On the sixth day of Christmas my true love gave to me... six geese a laying.

It may not be six geese, but this is a cool one. The laying of eggs represents life and creation. Together we have created a life. A life that I love and never want to leave. The only way it changes is for the better. I love you.

J<3

You smiled at the note before putting it back in the box. You set the box on the ground before turning to Jensen. “I love the life we’ve built and I love you.” You said as you leaned over and kissed him.

It was day seven already. Jensen had spent most of the day in the garage with Jared, building furniture and toys for the kids Christmas. You had spent most of the day cleaning and prepping for the families to arrive in two days. While cleaning in the living room, you heard both boys come in and go into the kitchen. Jensen came out of the kitchen drinking water and came over to give you a hug.

“Want to open the seventh day?” Jensen asked.

“Is Dean the best Winchester?” You asked back.

“Hey now!” You heard Jared scoff. You looked up to see him leaning against the wall. You laughed when you saw his annoyed face. “What are you doing?”

“Jensen is giving me the 12 Days of Christmas?” You said with a big smile on your face. You walked over to the table and waved Jared over. Jared walked over to see all the gifts. “Jackles, you did this on your own?” He said, shocked.

“Yeah, I did. Don’t sound so surprised. I’m a romantic.” Jensen said while hugging you from behind. He pulled back and went to grab the box from the garage. He set it town on the dining room table. You quickly opened it and saw a big gold swan with six slightly smaller ones around it. You gently set it down and looked for the note.

On the seventh day of Christmas my true love gave to me... seven swans a-swimming.

Purity. Beauty. Grace. Love. Elegance. You might think I’m talking about you, but really I’m talking about what a swan represents. You are the swan of my life. You are so pure, beautiful, graceful, full of love and elegance. In the world we live in, we need more of you, but I’m glad I have you. Never change my love. I love you.

J<3

You looked up from the note to see Jensen setting the swans on the table next to the other. You walked over and set the note next to the swan. You grabbed Jensen by his cheeks and turned his face towards you. You squeezed his cheeks and gently laid a kiss on his lips.

“You’re the real swan of this relationship. I love you.” You whispered. Jared watching his two best friends with warm eyes.

“Did you just call me a bird?” Jensen joked before kissing you again. You laughed and pulled away. You heard Jared laugh as well. You turned to the big moose.

“I didn’t think I would get all of these since he started this before he came home.” You said to Jared. You turned to Jensen, “This is literally the best gift I’ve ever gotten.”

“It’s only getting better.” Jensen said. You smiled. I’m going to start dinner. Jared you’re welcome to stay and Gen and the kids are welcome to join if you’d like?”

“I would love too, but Gen is actually making stew for dinner. Thanks for the invite though.” He smiled at you as he sat on the couch.

“Well you’re welcome anytime.” You said as you hugged him from behind and kissed his cheek. He grabbed your arm and gave it a squeeze and a pat before you let go. You walked out of the room and to the kitchen.

Jensen sat next to his brother and sat there for a second before he spoke.

“Is everything ready to go for Friday night?” Jensen asked.

“Yup. I’ll let the photographer in the back gate at 6:30. He said to give him 15 minutes to get stuff set up. I told him where you were going to be standing so make sure you stand there. Families know what’s happening and promise to keep it a secret. Gen picked up the ring the other day and I will give it to you when I get here Friday afternoon.” Jared said.

“Perfect. I really appreciate the help with all of this. You and Gen both. I don’t think I could pull off the proposal and the 12 Days of Christmas without you.” Jensen said sincerely.

Jared slapped Jensen on the back before standing up, “I’ll always do anything for you. Plus I’m happy you’re finally proposing. The two of you deserve each other and deserve to be happy.” He started walking towards the door. “I’ll see you tomorrow man. I’m going to go have a lazy night with my wife and kids.”

Jensen smiled at his friends and followed him to the door. Once he saw that Jared was in his truck, he shut and locked the door. He walked into the kitchen to talk with you while you cooked dinner.

Monday morning came too fast. Thankfully Gen gave you the week off. She said if she needed pictures taken, Jared could do it. You woke expecting to spend time with your husband, but he was gone. You walked to the kitchen and saw a note on the counter

Jared called for a morning run. Be back for lunch. Love you.

You smiled and decided you would make a full lunch and you could order out for dinner. You pulled out the ingredients for your favorite meal. You prepped the food within ten minutes before throwing it in the oven for three hours. You would make the rolls and salad when it was closer to lunch.

You decided today would be a lazy day of watching movies and casually wrapping Christmas presents for yours and Jensen’s family. When Jensen said he would be coming home from filming later than normal, you used your free time to wrap his presents so he couldn’t snoop. His presents were already under the tree.

You pushed the coffee table towards the love seat to create room for wrapping. You then went to the closet and got all the presents out and the wrapping paper. After setting everything down, you went down to the office to get the scissors and tape. Finally you were able to sit down and relax and wrap. You decided to watch all of the classic Christmas movies while you were wrapping since you hadn’t really seen any this year.

When Rudolph the Rednosed Reindeer ended, you decided to put Frosty the Snowman on next. Jensen walked in right when it started and he was holding a box. He smiled at you before he set it down in front of you before sitting next to you.

You ripped open the box to see eight maids milking a cow. You noticed the tail was curled like you could hold it and then you realized that it had a small hole on top.

“This is so cute that it might get used all year round.” You said looking at the piece that was made to hold milk or cream for coffee or tea. Jensen smiled at you and then handed you the note. “Oh my favorite part.” You beamed.

On the eighth day of Christmas my true love gave to me... eight maids a milking.

In the 15th and 16th century in England, “lets go-a-milking” meant “let’s get married.” One day I want to go-a-milking. I want to see you walk down that aisle to our forever. I love you so much.

J<3

You looked up at Jensen with tears in your eyes. He gently put his hand on your cheek and you leaned into his touch.

“This isn’t a proposal, but one day I will. I will give you forever.” He said before leaning in to give you a kiss with so much love.

“And when that day comes, I will say yes to our forever.” You smiled at him.

He smiled at you before he turned to see what you were doing before, “Put me to work so we can have a lazy movie day after lunch.” You laughed and told him to start wrapping.

Tuesday you woke up early. Going straight to the kitchen to start the coffee. You looked at the clock and noticed that it was only six in the morning. You groaned knowing it was going to be a long day, but you had to get things done before family arrived. You pulled out a notepad and pen and started a list for groceries you would need for the time everyone is here. You then made another list for the Christmas food you would need for Christmas Eve night and Christmas lunch and dinner.

You sighed before taking a drink of your coffee. You set it down and laid your head on the counter trying to get motivated to start the day's work. You felt arms wrap around you from behind. You sat up and leaned against your boyfriend.

“Why are you up so early?” He whispered, giving you a gentle kiss on the neck.

“Too much to do. I’m about to go to the grocery store, but I needed a list and coffee first.” You replied.

“Since when is the grocery store open this early?” He asked as he pulled away and got some coffee.

“Since it’s the holidays. I want to go when it opens so it’s not so busy. Not very many show up at 7 am.” You replied. “I just need to go get dressed.”

“Let me finish my coffee and I’ll go with you.” You were about to tell him he didn’t have to when he interrupted you. “No. Don’t say I don’t have to. I want to help. You are putting in so much work so we can host our families for Christmas. Just tell me what to do.” You smiled at him and thanked him before moving back upstairs to change clothes.

Later that afternoon, you started working on prepping food so all you had to do for two dinners and a lunch was to put them in the oven to cook them. Jensen walked into the kitchen before you could truly get started and he dragged you to the table holding the 12 Days of Christmas gifts.

You saw a medium size box and Jensen nodded for you to open it. You pulled out a jewelry box. When you opened it you saw a ballerina and it turned as the music played.

On the ninth day of Christmas my true love gave to me... nine ladies dancing

Today’s part of the song stands for the nine fruits of the Holy Spirit. They stand for love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self control. You are the love of my life and you give me so much love. You give me joy. You bring me peace. You are so patient with me. You give me so much kindness, even when I don’t deserve it. You bring so much good to the world and to me. You have faith in me when I don’t even have faith in myself. You’re gentle with me when I need it. And you have self control to not let your emotions overcome you to where you say or do something you would regret. (I don’t know how you have self control when I’m around though *wink wink*).

I love watching you dance around the kitchen when you cook, the bathroom when you are getting ready, and the living room when you are cleaning. You have danced your way into my heart and I hope you never dance out. I love you baby.

J<3

You walked up and hugged him. “You say all these kind things about me, when these almost match what I think about you.” You said into his chest.

“I can’t even compare to you baby.” He kissed the top of your head. “Okay. Let me help prep food so we can have a calm night. Mom told me they will be here by 10 tomorrow morning. And your dad said they’d be here around lunch. So let’s finish so we can enjoy our little alone time.”

The next morning, you were doing some last minute cleaning before Jensen’s parents arrived. You were cleaning the leftover breakfast dishes when you heard the doorbell. You were about to stop what you were doing when you heard Jensen get it.

“Hey guys.” You heard your boyfriend say to his parents.

“Hi baby. Where’s Y/N?” You heard his mom ask.

“I think she was doing something in the kitchen.” He responded. You heard someone walking towards you and decided to dry your hands and give a proper welcome to his parents.

“Y/N! How have you been?” Donna said as she stepped into the room.

“I’m good Donna. How was the trip?” You asked.

She nodded, “It was good. Is there anything I can help you with dear?”

“I think I’m good for now. Jensen has been a doll and has been helping me with everything. I think now we can go into the living room and talk. My parents should be here shortly.” You said guiding her to the living room.

After an hour of talking, your parents arrived. Your mom and Donna instantly started catching up when your mom turned and saw the table of gifts. She got up and walked over to it which drew Donna’s attention as well.

“What’s all this?” Your mom asked.

“Jensen has been doing the 12 Days of Christmas for me.” You said as Jensen came and wrapped his arms around you and gave you a kiss on the head.

“Well isn’t that sweet and romantic.” Your mom cooed. “Y/N, your dad never did anything like this for me, I know you’ve been dating for a few years, but if I haven’t said it before, he’s a keeper.”

You laughed as Donna agreed. You all decided to go grab lunch. Both sets of parents were catching you up on everything that was happening in their lives and your siblings lives. When you returned from lunch, your parents both went to their rooms to unpack and get comfortable. Jensen took you into the dining room where you saw another box.

When you opened it up, you saw ten leaping men as a tin decoration. You smiled and set it on the other table with the other gifts. You went back to the box and found the note.

On the tenth day of Christmas my true love gave to me... ten lords a leaping

These ten lords a leaping represent the ten commandments. But I have to be honest. I instantly thought about how you leaped your way into my heart. I also thought about how I would leap over mountains and oceans for you. Anything to make sure you are happy and feel loved. I still love you.

J<3

You smiled at Jensen and gave him a kiss on the cheek. He pulled you into him and gave you a heart stopping kiss. One kiss led to another and the next thing you know he has you sitting on the table with him between your legs making out. You had no care in the world. Just enjoying this small moment with your boyfriend. Jensen pulled away and your head jerked to the left when you heard a throat being cleared. Your face burned red when you saw your dad and Alan standing there.

It was finally Christmas Eve. Jensen decided since the house would be full of your siblings and nieces and nephews, he was going to give you your present this morning. He quietly got up and turned off your alarm. He walked down to the garage where he was hiding the presents and got the one labeled day eleven.

He walked back upstairs passing his mom. He stopped and gave her a kiss on the cheek and told her to make herself at home. He walked back towards your shared bedroom. He saw you sleeping so peacefully and he felt bad for waking you, but he wanted you to have this moment. He loved being able to share these few minutes with you. Seeing your eyes light up when you saw the present. He didn’t think it was possible for them to light up anymore than they already were until he saw you read the note. He knew you loved the gifts, but he loved that you loved the hand written notes and thought into what these gifts mean.

Jensen leaned over and kissed your face gently while rubbing your arm. “Come on baby. Open your eyes for me.” He said softly as he watched you try to wake up. You opened your eyes and blinked a few times before looking up at Jensen. “There she is.”

“Hi.” You whispered.

“Hi.” Jensen whispered back before giving you a soft kiss. “I wanted to give you your present before everyone got here. I like having the privacy for it.” You nodded and moved to sit up and lean against the headboard.

Jensen handed you the box. You tiredly smiled at him as you took it. You opened it up and found a medium wooden box. You opened it up and saw eleven wind instruments made out of wood. You smiled admiring the beauty of them. You moved onto the note that was laying in the bigger box.

On the eleventh day of Christmas my true love gave to me... eleven pipers piping

I learned today that eleven is considered an unlucky number because it’s one less than a dozen and one more than the number ten, which apparently is a fan favorite. These pipers stand for the faithful disciples. I hope you take this meaning as knowing I am faithful to you. I would never intentionally do anything to hurt you or to break your heart. I love you.

J<3

You smiled at the note before setting it and the boxes on the bedside table. You pulled Jensen to you and you gave him a lazy kiss while trying to fix his bed head.

“How about you show me how faithful you are before everyone wakes up and the others arrive.” You smirked at him. He lunged at you as you giggled. “It would be my pleasure.”

It was Christmas evening and you had noticed Jensen getting a little bit restless. He had been like that all day. You just thought it was because of all the people in the house, but when Jared showed up he got even more antsy. A little after six, you decided to pull him aside.

“Jense, come here.” You said waving him towards the stairs. You led him to the bedroom and sat him on the bed. “Is everything okay?”

“Yeah. Why wouldn’t it be?”

“You’ve just been restless all day. You almost look nervous.” You said rubbing your finger over the frown lines on his foreheads.

“I’m fine. Just feel weird having all these people here.” He said leaning up to give you a kiss. He turned to look at the clock on the beside and saw that it was 6:30. He knew Jared was now letting the photographer in the backyard. “Do you want day twelve?” You smiled and nodded.

When Jensen handed you the last box, you ripped it open and found twelve miniature drums stacked on one another. You pulled it out and admired its beauty of different colors. Jensen then picked up the note out of the box and then reached for your hands.

“Come on. I got a surprise for you outside.” You linked your fingers with his and smiled. When you walked through the living room to the backdoor, everyone watched on.

Jensen led you to the middle of the yard under the lights he hung last weekend. You heard music start playing through the outdoor speakers and you looked up to see Jared standing on the porch.

“You kids have fun out here. Just not too much fun.” He said while wiggling his eyebrows. You laughed and turned back to Jensen.

“May I have this dance?” He asked, holding his hand out. You nodded. “You know Y/N/N, you are the one thing in my life that can make me truly happy. There have been plenty of days that have been complete crap and I see you or call you and I instantly feel like I had the best day of my life. You listen to me and give me words of advice and encouragement. You love me when I don’t think I deserve to be loved.”

“You’ll always deserve love, Jense and I will spend the rest of our days reminding you of that.” You said. He smiled. He stopped dancing with you to hand you the last note. He turned you around and wrapped his arms around you. When you started to read it, he let go.

On the twelfth day of Christmas my true love gave to me... twelve drummers drumming

The meaning of this one comes from the Apostles' Creed. I’ll let you look that one up while I tell you what drumming means to me when it comes to you.

You walk to the beat of your own drum. You are the beat of my heart. Your love is a drum and I never want to miss a beat. Now it’s time for your heart to skip a beat in a good way.

I really love you.

J<3

Now turn around baby.

You turned around and gasped when you saw Jensen on one knee holding up a box with a beautiful ring inside.

“Y/N/N baby. I did the 12 Days of Christmas to show you how I see you. To show you what you mean to me. I want to love you for the rest of my life and beyond. I want to be your shoulder to cry on. I want to comfort you when you need it. I want to be part of the reason for that beautiful smile. Will you let me love and care for you for the rest of our lives? Will you marry me Y/N/N?”

You felt tears rush down your face as you smiled.

“Yes. A million times yes Jense.” He smiled and put the ring on your left ring finger. He stood up and wrapped his arms around your waist and picked you up spinning you in circles. You put your hands on his face and leaned down to kiss him. “I love you.” You whispered to him as you stared into his eyes.

You heard cheering from the porch. With Jensen still holding you, you both looked up and smiled at your family.

“It’s about time.” You heard Jared yell as he walked down to hug the two of you. “I’ve had to keep this secret for so long.” “You knew?!” You asked, shocked.

“Jensen planned it all, just needed some assistance so you wouldn’t find out. He knows you don’t like surprises and you don’t like waiting for presents.” Jared said while laughing. You shrugged knowing he was right.

You turned back to Jensen and he wrapped his arms around you. “Thank you for making me the happiest man in the world. I can’t wait to call you Mrs. Ackles.”

You smiled at your fiance before giving him one last kiss. You turned towards the rest of the family that followed Jared. You gave everyone a hug and thanked them as they congratulated the both of you. You saw Jensen talking with your brother and Jared and you smiled at him. Even though you were now making it official, both of you were already a part of each other's families.

This was a Christmas you would never forget.

[babbushka]

December Fic Recap

Howdy folks, and a very Happy New Year to you all! Well, we did it, we somehow made it through 2020, lol. With the end of another month, comes the fic recap list. If you’re new here, this is the opportunity I take to compile all the new writing that I posted this month, for those who may have missed some posts, or who are looking to re-read, or who may be new here and want to jump in on the fun!

I also update each character masterlist with this new writing, so if you’ve been looking for the update, here it is!

(No chapter updates this month, I’m sorry to say, but I’ll make up for that in January)

Oneshots: 

Get Gimel ; Flip Zimmerman x Reader***

In The Becoming ; Mob!Kylo Ren x Reader

Another Adventure ; Flip Zimmerman x Reader x Kylo Ren***

It’s All Worthwhile ; Lawyer!Kylo Ren x Reader***

A December To Remember ; Lawyer!Kylo Ren x Reader***

The Christmas Waltz ; Dan Jones x Reader

Wreck The Malls ; Flip Zimmerman x Reader**

Character Headcanons:

The Kylo AUs ranked from most to least dominant*

What Lawyer!Kylo Ren loves about his job

Lawyer!Kylo Ren being annoyed with how much he likes you

Lawyer!Kylo Ren’s pet peeves that you do to annoy him

Lawyer!Kylo Ren realizing he’s starting to fall for you

Lawyer!Kylo Ren’s favorite sex positions**

Lawyer!Kylo Ren’s dominance preference**

Lawyer!Kylo Ren collecting his reward for winning a case against you**

Lawyer!Kylo Ren taking you on a date

Lawyer!Kylo Ren being domestic with you and not even realizing it

Character Imagines: 

Kylo Ren

Supreme Leader Kylo Ren fucking you after murdering some enemies***

Supreme Leader Kylo Ren watching the stars on a winter night with you

The first time Lawyer!Kylo Ren sees you**

Lawyer!Kylo Ren shredding an attorney that’s bothering you

Lawyer!Kylo Ren being possessive and fucking you in the bathroom of an event***

Lawyer!Kylo Ren fucking the attitude out of you***

Lawyer!Kylo Ren visiting you in your office and fucking you over the desk***

Lawyer!Kylo Ren fingering and teasing you on his couch***

Spending Hanukkah with Lawyer!Kylo Ren Part 1, Part 2**, Part 3***, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6***

Lawyer!Kylo Ren fucking you on the side of the road coming back from the Hanukkah celebration***

Lawyer!Kylo Ren texting you about the Grinch because he misses you

Lawyer!Kylo Ren wanting to sleep in on Christmas morning

Lawyer!Kylo Ren inspiring complicated fluffy feelings from you

Bond Villain!Kylo Ren eatin’ you out in your secret apartment in Moscow***

Bond Villain!Kylo Ren spending quiet time with you in Moscow

Bond Villain!Kylo Ren taking photographs of you while you have sex***

Bond Villain!Kylo Ren phone sex***

Bond Villain!Kylo Ren finding you at a romantic ski lodge

Kissing Mob!Kylo’s scar

Mob!Kylo Ren stealing a few moments alone with you during his Hanukkah party

Biker!Kylo Ren cuddling with you on a snowy afternoon

Medieval!Kylo Ren having a snow day with you to celebrate the Solstice

Medieval!Kylo Ren eating you out by the fireplace after a Solstice feast***

Flip Zimmerman

Flip Zimmerman fucking you by the fireplace on the last night of Hanukkah***

Flip Zimmerman giving you a sexy massage after your Hanukkah party**

Flip Zimmerman enjoying a quiet moment by the candles with you

Flip Zimmerman wearing an ugly Hanukkah sweater

Flip Zimmerman burning latkes

Flip Zimmerman giving you his dick in a box***

Flip Zimmerman bitching about how he’s cold from the snow***

Flip Zimmerman coming home after falling in the lake during ice fishing

Flip Zimmerman snuggling with you on the couch with some hot chocolate

Clyde Logan 

Clyde Logan putting up a menorah at Duck Tape for you

Clyde Logan kissing you under the mistletoe

Clyde Logan decorating the Christmas tree with you

Clyde Logan spiking the hot chocolate at his Christmas party

Clyde Logan playing Christmas carols on the piano with you

Charlie Barber 

Charlie Barber celebrating Hanukkah with you and Henry

Paterson 

Paterson kissing powdered sugar off your lips

Paterson & Paul Sevier in a snowball fight with you

Pale 

Pale waking up to see you’ve decorated his apartment

Pale getting excited to celebrate Christmas with you

The total word count for December clocks in at: 71, 536!

Thank you all for spending another month with me, and whether you’ve been following for a day or a month or a year, it means the world that you all enjoy the writing! Here’s to a happy and healthy 2021, sending you all my love! 

*** = NSFW content! All fics are tagged with content warnings at the beginning of the story 

[written-on-the-trees]

What Do You Call A Bad Popcorn Joke? - Machine Gun Kelly Fan Fiction

Prompt: Popcorn String

Warnings: None

Word Count: 1050 words

Summary: It's Colson's first Christmas with Rosie and Casie, but that doesn't mean that everything's new. Traditional decorations are important...as are terrible jokes.

Note: This story is an official part of a series I’ve published on Ao3 and Wattpad but for some reason not Tumblr...I think next year I’m going to try and make sure everything is everywhere, but until then, enjoy all the terrible jokes I could pack into 1000 words and check it out in those other places if you’re interested in some equally terrible pick-up lines.

    It was no secret that Colson had once been dirt poor.

  There had been more than one occasion where he’d only eaten because there had been leftovers from work, or when he hadn’t been able to pay the heating bill and he’d had to heat up pans of water to shower, or when Casie had needed new shoes and Colson had had to go begging to a thrift store to discount the already dirt-cheap shoes they had because he literally had seven dollars to his name. It had been particularly bad at Christmas.

 He hadn’t even had a tree the first year after he’d broken up with Casie’s mum…but that didn’t mean he hadn’t tried. He’d spent fucking hours with sheets of old newspaper, the remains of the red wrapping paper he’d used to wrap Casie’s present, and green paper, making paper chains. He’d strung popcorn onto thread. He cut snowflakes into newspaper. He done everything he could to make their apartment as Christmas-y as he could, even though he was dirt poor. Casie had deserved the best Christmas Colson could give her - and even though it had made him feel like shit that he couldn’t give her all the presents and lights and sparkle, he’d always tried his hardest to make the holiday magical for her.

 It was insane how much things had changed.

 This year he was sitting in an apartment in London, watching the two most important women in his life decorating the shit out of everything they could.

 Colson couldn’t remember being happier, except for maybe the first time he’d held Casie. The fact that his daughter was so in love with his girlfriend was the best Christmas present he could ask for. Better than the big tree decorated with ornaments - “baubles, dad, Rosie says they’re called baubles” - and tinsel and lights in every shade of pink, better than the small mountain of gifts from friends and family waiting to be put under that tree, better than all the great things that had happened to him this year…the fact that Casie was smiling and laughing with Rosie was just…the best.

   “Oi, Skellington Jack, get your long legs over here.”

 “Yeah, dad! We need your help.”

 “Skellington Jack? Really?” Colson laughed, even as he got up to go and help the girls with the finishing touch on the tree.

   The string of popcorn.

 Casie had insisted on bringing it with them when she heard that they were going to be spending Christmas in London; they’d put it up every year, even now Colson had money for real decorations - good ones, too - and Casie hadn’t wanted to leave it in California when they were hundreds of miles away.

 She had carefully lifted it out of her suitcase when Rosie had announced they were spending the weekend decorating, and carefully asked Rosie if they could put it up - and because Rosie was possibly the best woman Colson knew, she had not only promised Casie that it would have pride of place, but she was making sure she kept her promise. They were putting it on last of all, making sure nothing went on top of it, and Colson had no idea how to tell Rosie how touched he was by the fact she was taking Casie’s Christmas tradition so seriously.

 He’d had some girlfriends who didn’t even want to acknowledge Casie…although ‘girlfriend’ might be too strong a word for what they had been to him. Rosie, though, had greeted his daughter with a warm smile and a terrible joke, and Casie had warmed up to her straight away: terrible jokes and all.

 Not that Colson could judge her for that.

   “Hey, Rosie, wanna hear a joke?”

   Casie groaned, and Colson just grinned.

   Rosie was just as bad, smirking at the way Casie was rolling her eyes at them: “If it is what I think it is…nah, it’ll be too corny.”

 “Hey, what did that pop out of?”

 “I dunno. Maybe it was because I got lost in a cornfield once.” Rosie grinned slyly: “Although I had to admit, I felt pretty a-maze-ing when I found my way out.”

 Casie rolled her eyes so hard Colson thought they might roll out of her head: “You guys are literally the worst. You’re both cheesier than the pizza we had for lunch.”

 Colson, far from his discouraged by his daughter’s teenage grumbling, saw an opportunity and he took it: “Hey Casie, what’s a popcorn's favourite pizza topping?

 “Dad, no…”

 “Popperoni!”

   Casie actually smacked him, but she was laughing in spite of herself, so Colson was taking that as a win. He took it as even more of a win when she made him pick her up so she could finish wrapping their popcorn string around the top of the tree, before he let her down and they all stepped back to admire their handiwork.

 Even for someone who had spent most the afternoon following directions, Colson thought they had done pretty good.

 He wrapped one arm around Casie’s shoulders, and the other around Rosie’s shoulders, and pulled them into his side for a hug. All was peaceful for a few seconds, the three of them basking in the good job they had done together…before Colson decided to chat shit.

   “Well, ladies, once again: I have created a masterpiece.”

 “Yeah, by staying out of the way you made sure you didn’t break anything.” Rosie snarked back immediately, as Casie laughed: “Well done you.”

 Colson nodded sagely: “It was a very important task.”

   They all laughed, before flopping down on the couch, and Colson reached for the remote so he could find a terrible Christmas film the three of them could bitch about. As far as Colson was concerned, he’d literally had the best day of his whole year - maybe his entire decade. He was surrounded by his two favourite people, Christmas cheer, and a sense of contentment that felt like it was warming him right to the bones. Colson didn’t think he could be happier if he tried.

 It was shaping up to be a wonderful Christmas…and Colson was confident that it would only get better from here.

[missdaviswrites]

2020  Advent Ficlet Challenge

2020 Advent Ficlet Challenge

Had enough of 2020 yet? This December, I'll be celebrating the end of the year by writing ficlets based on the prompts below. And I don't want to do it alone!

JOIN ME!

Below is a list of prompts—feel free to do as many or as few as you like. Switch them around, combine them, change ones you don’t like, write them all in a month, or take all year—it’s up to you. I’m calling it an Advent challenge so I can stop writing on the 24th and have the rest of the month off, but you don’t have to write about Christmas if you don’t want to. Be creative and do whatever inspires you! Write that trope you love or misinterpret the prompt to fit what you want to say. Make some art if writing's not your thing. Just make sure you have fun!

You can post your ficlets on Tumblr and/or on AO3. I’ve created an AO3 collection for everyone’s work, which will be open to all starting December 1: 2020 Advent Ficlet Challenge. If possible, when posting on AO3, please post all of your ficlets as one work with chapters instead of individual stories. This makes it easier for readers to browse the collection (and reduces the number of emails I get every day). If you post on Tumblr, use the tag “#2020 Advent Ficlet Challenge” so others can find your ficlets.

Open to all fandoms, ships and ratings!

2020 Advent Ficlet Challenge Prompts

1. Tis the Season 2. Bells 3. Chilly 4. Deck the halls 5. Shepherd 6. Joy 7. Blankets 8. O Christmas Tree 9. Making a list 10. Candle 11. Dashing through the snow 12. Visiting 13. Storm 14. Hope 15. Jolly 16. Twinkling 17. Let nothing you dismay 18. Gifts 19. Faith 20. Sweets 21. Darkness 22. Friends and family 23. Love 24. Merry Christmas

Thanks to everyone who participates or signal boosts this challenge, and a special thank you to @itsacon10​ for this year’s artwork! 

[nothingbutimagines]

12 Days of Ficmas (December 2020)

Happy Holidays to all!! Starting December 13th and ending December 24th, I will be doing Ficmas! 

Not only am I putting together a collection of fics I will write for the 12 days leading up to christmas, I will also be taking requests as well for any winter/holiday related fics or really any fic in general! Thank you all so much for a great year yet again! Merry Christmas! Happy Hanukkah! Happy Holidays!

12 days of fics: 

December 13th: Lumberjack - Peter Parker x Reader (Peter and the reader go out to buy a Christmas tree. Hilarity ensues.)

December 14th: The Holidate - Steve Rogers x Reader (After the reader’s grandmother has been hounding them to get a boyfriend, the reader convinces Steve, the only team member alone on Christmas and their slight enemy, to go with them)

December 15th: Kitchen Dance Floor - Roommate!Tom Holland x Reader (After catching the reader dancing in the kitchen, Tom can’t help but fall in love.)

December 16th: Last Christmas - Wanda Maximoff x Reader (Last Christmas the reader spent the evening crying in the bathroom after Wanda rejected her. This year, the reader finds out why.)

December 17th: Hideaway - Peter Parker x Reader (Bored and snowed in, the reader and Peter build a pillow and blanket fort)

December 18th: Lock and Key - Steve Rogers x Reader (Tony throws a party where women have a lock, men have a key, and they need to find their match. The reader and Steve don’t know it’s all for them to get together with some help)

December 19th: Snowflake - Natasha Romanoff x Reader (While making paper snowflakes for the windows, the reader asks Natasha what their future might look like.)

December 20th: Sandy Claws - Avengers x Reader (Tony tries to convince everyone to take a picture with Santa while shopping at the mall)

December 21st: The Setup - Tom Holland x Reader (Tom and the reader hadn’t seen one another since the reader moved away to go to Uni. The reader’s family invites Tom to Christmas dinner to surprise the reader and set up the two to get together)

December 22nd: Ice Skates - Peter Parker x Reader (In which both Peter and the reader thinks the other knows how to ice skate. Falling and slipping and hilarity ensues as they both realize the other does not know how to skate.)

December 23rd: Gingerbread Man - Harrison Osterfield x Reader (Harrison keeps eating all the decorations and playfully knocks over the gingerbread house, causing the reader to want to fight him)

December 24th: Baked with Love - Tom Holland x Reader (Hallmark move AU! Reader is a big city business woman and Tom is the local baker with a love for Christmas and a heart of gold. High school sweethearts reunited by fate and for Tom to show her the true meaning of Christmas.)

[owlmylove]

it is 2020, and i have a writing job. i write about fish, which means reading about fish. i sit at a carefully-set dining table in an empty room, drafty old windows letting the dark and the cold seep into my pulse; i am still, always, a little too anemic. i press frigid fingers to burning cheeks, and read about tuna. 

+500lb adult tuna swim in little groups. they slow down near boats if there are enough strange things floating in the water to make them curious. they’re known to act drunk after gorging themselves, cartwheeling and swimming in circles around one another, and no one knows why -- there’s nothing in the fish they eat that could give them such a response. but tuna have to swim continually, so it’s theorized they’re swimming and flipping and spinning around their pod members because they don’t want to swim elsewhere. 

they have full stomachs, and so do their friends, and they don’t want to leave. like sinking into the soft tweed of a friend’s couch after a long evening of food and laughter, cocktails trailing into dessert and tripping into nursed coffees. that sensation of warmth, and familiarity, and the pleasant ache of a laughter-headache after so many hours of familial joy. and so everyone lingers as they collect the glasses and rinse the dishes, an unwilling come-down from the dizzy heights of happiness, because no one wants it to end. and maybe, you think, if you stay a little longer, let the candles burn down a little dimmer, you can keep the feeling inside of you.

tuna stay where they’re well-fed and content, twisting and wheeling around each other’s bodies in sharp flicks of silver. 500 pounds and feather-light, buoyant in their simple bliss. so they dance upwards to the sun to share the joy, to stay in it, and this, apparently, is when it’s easiest to harpoon their glutted bodies

the fishing blogs claim not to know why the tuna twist and spin to the surface. they only know much easier it is, once you’ve spotted the silver, to aim your gun. I sit at my empty dining table, besides a pine tree no one will see, and wonder about feeling well-fed with those you love. about the kind of people who can see dancing and reach for a weapon. about how long it will take for me to sink with a sigh into a strange couch again, the bright and bursting feeling that will spill out of me once I can. 

on a wholly unrelated note, christmas might be vegan this year

[riverdalebingo]

Riverdale Holiday Bingo 2020

Shoutout to the amazingly talented and lovely @bettycooper for creating the beautiful banner and mobile header!

Riverdale Holiday Bingo is back for a 2020 Round. This is an all-character, all-ship creation challenge.

This round is going to run a little differently than the usual bingo. Since it is a mini-version you will receive a 3x3 bingo card with 9 holiday-themed prompts which you will choose from the list below.  The challenge is to write or create a piece that fills the prompt on each square. 

This challenge will run from November 23, 2020 - January 8, 2021  Sign-Ups are open at any time and you can begin posting once you get your card up until the deadline.

Please complete this form to sign up. Make sure you have your 9 prompts picked out from the list below. 

Rules

1. Tag @riverdalebingo​ and #riverdalebingo in the first five tags of your work to submit it for this event. 

2. In order for a square to be considered filled, it must meet the prompt and must be Riverdale related. (More information can be found in the guidelines). 

3. You must create a separate piece for each square filled on each bingo card (no doubling up).

Guidelines

All Riverdale fan created content is eligible for this challenge including but not limited to fanfiction, gifs, edits, fanart, moodboards/aesthetics, etc. If it’s created content, you can submit it.

All Riverdale characters, ships and ot3′s are allowed for this event as are RPF (real-person fic), reader inserts, and OC’s (original characters).

Mature and explicit ratings are allowed for this event but must be tagged/warned for accordingly.

Explicit depictions between an adult and a minor are not allowed.

This is a Riverdale challenge so please make all square fills Riverdale related. At a minimum, at least one canon character, ship, or location must be featured in the work.

Please tag appropriately! Please keep all mature/explicit content under a read more link and tag any possible triggers and sensitive subjects. If you are unsure of what to tag for a piece, feel free to ask me.

You may (and are encouraged to) include pieces created for this challenge in other fandom events.

There is no word limit on fanfiction but if it is over 500 words please add a read-more link.

If you blackout (complete all squares) your card, you may request a second.

More information and prompt list under the cut:

Posting and Submitting Pieces for this Challenge

To submit a piece for this challenge please tag @riverdalebingo in all square fills and tag #riverdalebingo in the first five tags so your work shows up in the tag on tumblr. This system isn’t perfect so if I haven’t reblogged your work within a week of posting, please send me a message.

At a minimum, any square fill must contain the following: the square being filled, the word count (if applicable), the ship(s) and/or characters (if applicable), tags/warnings. If your work does not include the criteria listed, I will send you a message asking you to update your work or it will not be reblogged.

I highly recommend cross-posting to Archive of Our Own. You can add your work to the collection HERE.

A masterlist will be posted at the end of this challenge with all works submitted and a participant list.

Holiday Prompts

Please choose 9 prompts from the list below. These prompts will be used to create your bingo card. If there is a prompt you want to use that isn’t on this list please send me a message. I came up with these off the top of my head so there are definitely more I’m missing. 

A Christmas Bet

Accidental Love Confession

Advant Calendar

After the Kids Have Gone to Sleep

Airport Meet-Cute

Apple Cider

Awkward Exes

Baby's First Christmas

Baking Competition

Baking Cookies

Black Friday

Blackout (Power Outage)

Boxing Day

Building A Snowman

By the Fire

Candy Canes

Charity Work

Cheesy Christmas Music

Christmas Carols

Christmas Crafts

Christmas Dinner

Christmas Emergency

Christmas Eve

Christmas Market

Christmas Morning

Christmas Pageant/Concert

Christmas Proposal

Christmas Vacation

Christmas Wish

Combining Traditions

Countdown to Midnight

Cuddling for Warmth

Eggnog

Fake Dating

Final Exams

First Love

First Responders During the Holidays

Gift Exchange

Gift Giving

Gift Shopping

Gingerbread House

Going Sledding

Hallmark Movie AU

Hanukkah

Hockey

Holding Hands

Holiday Meet-Cute

Holiday Miracle

Holiday Mis-Hap

Holiday Movie AU

Holiday Parade

Holiday Party

Holiday Romance

Holiday Spirit

Home for the Holidays

Ice Skating

Kwanzaa

Letters to Santa

Malls Elves

Meeting the Family

Midnight Kiss

Mutual Pining

Naughty List

Naughty or Nice

New Year's Day

New Year's Eve

New Year's Resolution

Picking out the Christmas Tree

Pictures with Santa

Putting Up Decorations

Putting Up the Christmas Tree

Reindeer

Reunion

Santa Hat

Santa's Sleigh

Secret Santa

Sharing Hot Cocoa (Chocolate)

Snow Angels

Snow Fort

Snowball Fight

Snowed In

Snowstorm

Special Ornaments

Stockings

Stuck at the Airport

Thanksgiving Dinner

Traditions

Tree Lighting Ceremony

Ugly Christmas Sweaters

Under the Mistletoe

Unresolved Feelings

Visiting Relatives

Watching Holiday Specials on TV

Weekend Ski-Trip

Work Holiday Party

Working During the Holidays

Wrapping Presents

Let me know if you have any questions! Happy creating and happy holidays!!

[troped-fanfic-challenge]

Chopped: Holiday Trope Exchange!

Welcome to the Chopped: Holiday Gift Exchange! A Secret Santa style gift exchange, but with a Chopped Twist! If you’re new to this event, welcome!! We hope you choose to join in on our festive fun!! 

The Chopped: Holiday Trope Exchange is a double blind fic exchange, meaning you wont know who you’re writing for, or who is writing for you! Here’s how it works:

First, take a look at our list and pick four (4) tropes that you’d like to be included in your gift!!

Then, sign up here!!

Remember, this event is double blind!! This is to help preserve that truly quintessential Chopped experience, where any writer can take the tropes and make something unique and surprising! Because of this, you wont be able to reach out to your recipient for any more info, and that means what you give your writer is all they have to go on, so try to be clear! If there is something you really want, or really don’t want, make sure to tell them during this stage of the exchange! 

Then...wait! We will have a two week sign up period, so after you’ve signed up, just keep your ask box open and be prepared to get your prompt! We will send out your prompts between December 1st and December 5th to your ask box, and then the writing period begins! 

Fics are due on December 24th at 11:59pm!!! Submit your fics to our AO3 collection, which can be found here! Please be sure to have them in on time, because we will be reviewing them to make sure all your tropes are included! This AO3 collection is unrevealed, which means once your fic is submitted, you won’t be able to see it until we reveal them! If you’re worried about whether we received it or not, you can always DM us to ask! 

We will review all the fics and then we will reveal them all on December 27th! (We like to enjoy the holidays with our families too guys lol)! 

Signs-ups can be found here: 

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/GMWHJHF

Please remember that assignments will be delivered to your Ask Box, so please make sure you have those open, and please be sure not to post the ask you receive, so it can be kept anonymous.

Timeline:

Sign Up Starts: NOW!

Sign Up Ends: 11:59pm on November 21st!

Trope Assignments Released: Between December 1st and December 5th

Fics Are Due: 11:59pm on December 24th! 

Fics Revealed: December 27th!

All times are in Eastern Standard Time (EST).

Theme Explanation:

For this Holiday Theme, fics must be set sometime between November through January. They may be centered around certain holidays like, Thanksgiving, Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanza, Winter Solstice, Boxing Day, Las Posadas, Diwali, New Year’s Eve/Day, etc. Or they may be centered around holiday type activities like, Christmas Tree Lightings, Ice Skating, Polar Plunges, Family/Friends’ Gatherings, Work Parties, Traveling, Religious Celebrations, etc.

Rules:

Our rules from the previous iterations of this challenge have worked out really well for us, so we are going to stick to them! If you need a refresher, the rules are as follows:

The requirements for the fics entered into the competition will be:

Must be The 100 Characters

Must fit the theme

Must use ALL of the tropes selected by your recipient. If you don’t use the tropes, we will contact you and ask you to remedy the issue. Please remember, these are a gift for someone else, and by signing up, you’re agreeing to include the tropes your recipient has asked for!

There is no maximum word count, but your fics must be at least 2,000 words.

All ratings G through M are welcome. E ratings are not permitted for this round. [M ratings are permitted to allow for sex scenes in your fics while also ensuring that people who do not enjoy smut fics won’t end up with a gift including smut. For sex scenes in an M rated fic, think of it like a pg-13 rom-com, where the scene starts, gets a little hot and heavy, but fades to black before any explicit sexual content occurs.]

You will be disqualified if you include:

Rape!

Underage! (This means no high school AU with sex, no teacher/student if the student is underage, zero adult/under 18 relationships!)

Incest! (incest includes adopted siblings, parent/child, step siblings, biological siblings, or any familial relationship, blood related or not!).

Negativity towards any character or ship! (This includes any sort of abuse perpetrated by a character intending to paint them in a negative light, negative statements about a character intended purely to express your dislike of a character, or things of that nature.)

Smut! For this round only, smut is also not permitted. Sex scenes without explicit sexual content are permitted, but genitalia and the description of sexual acts are not permitted.

This event was created to help get creative and different fics out into the world, and to create a fun, positive fandom experience for everyone! In order to ensure that we achieve that goal of a positive experience, we reserve the right to disqualify anyone if we are reading and we think it violates any of our rules.

Please remember that we will reveal the fics all on the same day, and until then this is a secret gift exchange!! Please only submit your fics to the AO3 Collection, and do not post them on your personal blog or on your AO3 account until the fics have been posted by us, and do not reveal what tropes you were assigned before the reveal.

Submit your fics to the AO3 Collection for Chopped: Holiday Trope Exchange 2020 here: https://archiveofourown.org/collections/Chopped_Holiday_Trope_Exchange

If you have any questions or concerns please send an ask or dm @thelittlefanpire or @dylanobrienisbatman!