#The adventure of the colonial boy

[lucere-aeresta]

Gay Sherlock Holmes Pastiches Review - The Adventure of the Colonial Boy

My vedict: 5 stars.

Ok objectively it should be 4 but half more star for the cool Chinese woman character and another half for a certain plot that is very healing for me.

I really like this book! This is written by the same author as the last one I reviewed: A Dream To Build A Kiss On. But this one is much better imo. The story is better and the writing is more sophisticated. The struggle of Watson after witness his brother's tragedy is very touching, and how they both overcome their fear and doubt about love to be with each other is very encouraging. I love it a lot.

The mystery/case aspect of this one is alright - not super engaging but interesting enough to keep me reading instead of skimming through. And the awesome Chinese woman character! A big thumbs up!

This book makes me think about mystery and romance and how they could fit into each other. I said objectively it is 4 stars because I feel the mystery and the romance are somehow segregated. Yes there are some plots their conflict against the enemies bring their relationship deeper, but generally speaking the case itself and their relationship development are two parallel lines, and even sort of distracting to each other. When I read about the mystery and suddenly one character starts to think about their love, or when they are being affectionate but then have to be back on track to solve the case, it is just confusing and kind of pulls me out of the reading a bit. It disturbs the flow.

That being said, I know it is very hard to integrate these two aspects well enough. I have read very few romance/mystery novels, and for now, I haven't seen any that I can say is well done. One aspect is always weaker than another, or they somehow get mixed up in a very weird confusing way. Mystery and romance might be mutually exclusive imo, unless the mystery involves one of the characters who are in the relationship. But maybe I just read so few fictional works that I haven't seen enough.

But to be fair, I barely see any romance that interests me at all other than ships in fandom...oh well lol this is getting subjective.

So this book, even though is not perfectly done, I can see the effort of the writer to bring these two aspects together and it is enjoyable. I appreciate it.

-------------It is the end of the book review. More personal thoughts below, and be aware of spoilers----------------

One specific plot in this book is so healing for me that I have to give it more stars.

In this story Watson's brother Henry died because he was found out to be gay and was disowned by his father, and got through a lot of rough times because of his sexual orientation, which eventually leads to his tragic ending. John has his pocket watch, and it becomes a warning of the danger of being in gay relationships. Whenever he desires Sherlock he sees the watch and reminds himself not to do anything foolish. The watch is the solidification of his fear of being with a man.

I read a very long fanfic more than a decade ago, which has haunted me for years, and still lingers in the back of my mind. It is very homophobic and the main character has some really fucked up internalized homophobia, and he has something to remind himself not being gay just like Watson's watch in this book. Whenever he wants to be with a man he will look at the thing and suppress his desire. He is not merely fearing for being gay, but also reassures himself that being gay is wrong and it is moral to suppress his feelings.

This particular trope plagued me at first, then I turned it into a running joke among my friends, but it resonates with my personal experience of fearing being the sexual minority, so I never fully recovered from it.

But in Colonial Boy, John chooses to be brave and be with Sherlock, and later on, he gives the watch away to save Sherlock's life. Then he takes Sherlock to his brother's grave and they make the pledge of marriage to each other, Henry's spirit being their witness. He breaks the curse attached to the watch and leaves the fear and doubt behind. At the moment, I feel the same--the lingering effect of that particular plot now is easing away bit by bit. I feel refreshed and braver. Maybe these stories can help me heal, if not all the wounds from real life, at least the doubt left over by my encounters with those hurtful fanfictions and toxic people. Stories like this give me hope--it is not the first one, and definitely will not be the last one.

[spider-xan]

My unpopular opinion that I hope doesn't actually come to pass is that depending on how things go this year, I'm worried I may end up hating Quincey, not bc of anything wrong with his character per se, but bc of the weird pedestal he gets put on to the point of all his flaws being erased and he gets treated as the literally perfect character who never does anything wrong - even when the others do the same wrong thing and get rightfully criticized for it - and the cast's working class representation (like, yeah, that's what cowboys were historically, but that's definitely not the case here, and Stoker's classism absolutely appears if a character is working class, and even if he was working class, it's moot if he operates as a rich socialite anyway?), and like, a rich American adventurer from Texas just after the Civil War in a book like Dracula should definitely be examined more, as well as why fandom frames him the way it does, even if ultimately, he's like, probably Stoker's cowboy gay fantasy character more than anything.

[seaoreos]

the funniest thing about being bi and having a self-shipper partner + qpp who are both mainly/exclusively attracted to men is that when they see a neat woman they immediately look at me and go ‘bee you should selfship with her’ I love it

[thefatalsiren]

Garfield Wilson Interview

I had the absolute pleasure of interviewing Garfield Wilson a couple weeks ago. This probably Hass to be one of my favorite interviews not only because I always love conversing with this human, but the things that we actually talk about are very important. Give it a listen and don’t forget to like and subscribe to my YouTube page. Also give Garfield a follow because you will really find a lot of…

[understandableparadox]

bischeon lore part 1: Crash landing era

Welcome to bischeon! the lost colony planet of Alterna.

countless generations ago, this planet was marked to be a safe-haven for high bloods. the long coast lines and fertile lands would be made into resorts, tactical training centers and farm lands. supplying food and young blood thirsty generals to the Grand trollien fleets slow all consuming march across the galaxy.

though as the more astute may observe, given its title of a lost colony, that is not exactly what happened...sailing out over the vast expanse of space, near a old old pocket in a solar system that seemed to good to be true. each planet regardless of how far or close to the burning red sun in its center... all of them were bursting with life! lush and verdant with breathable atmospheres and vast oceans.

the captain of the initial touch down mission was known simply as the Catptain Nyasputin. an eccentric, a lover of history yet one of the most capable pilots within the history of the star born fleets... they were nearing the point where they could park it on any of the many paradise planets and live out the rest of their sweeps. they could almost taste the beach side booze...

they approached the planet with two moons, chosen by committee by the somewhat hive sick highbloods. they planned to have the touch down point in a clearing exactly one mile out from the ocean, allowing the low bloods and drones to start up base camp.

though just before they could pass by the atmosphere, a sound ringed out. not a hiss. not a roar. not a scream.

yet it echos out, reverberating, resonating with all that it comes into contact with. the planet shakes and seems to take on a greener tint. the screams of yellow bloods below within the bowels of the engine room managed to rise up as their power swelled.

psychokinetic energy flooded the facilities, destroying the navigation devices. frying the communications array, nearly exploding the delicate equipment meant to hold and foster the matriorb.

now. the mark of a good captain is hard to measure. at times a bad one and good one can be indistinguishable, as the only goal is to reach point b. everything in between is negligible to a point.

the mark of a good captain is found in HOW they respond to a disaster. of course any captain would do their best to avoid the danger in the first place but as oceans and space hold each other close in their commonality of surprise, we rarely have such a choice.

very truly, the ship may have been a lost cause, one that would have only been remembered as a mysterious disappearance on alternian records and a sign to avoid that general cut of space.

yet nyasputins nerves...or seemingly lack thereof was their life line. even with the multiple engines turning the various appliances of the ship into bombs, the navigations systems still worked. the ship could still be steered.

his original plan was to just level the ship out so that it would skid across the longest possible path, using the trees to act as the ships main method of slowing down, then start culling portions of the engine blocks to come to a halt.

though fate rarely treats our plans kindly. as the catptain looked out at the path that would leave him with some crew instead of none he watched something come into view. something massive. something glowing with burning energy and eyes glowering with a hate much the same.

it had the same white scales of the lusus back hive. yet it was wild. territorial enough to watch this massive meteor of chitin and energy hurtling towards it and not back down...

that glow burns brighter and brighter, flames almost liquid in consistency dripped from its maw. the heckles on nyasputins neck raised as he sensed this wouldn't be a "lol, shoulda fucking moved idiot" situation.

a hail Mary, the catptian through everything into the ships defenses. allowing all steering capabilities to die out, all emergency systems to falter, even removeing power from the wifi router in the highbloods lobby.

just as the shimmering field of psiioniic energy formed around the ship, a beam of pure white wrapped around it. blinding light streaming with the burning hatred for the intruders from the life forms on the planet. the force of the beam slowly dragging the ships orbital crash momentum down to a crawl and finally even pushing it backwards.

even with the shields present, they felt themselves nearly boiling from the heat, yet they felt no burn... instead the crew were lucky enough to only report bouts of confusion. extreme fatique, a good amount of the crew would pass out. those were the enviable as they watched and waited to see if they would die or survive.

minutes or hours, it was impossible to tell as the onslaught finally stopped, the ships power depleted, the engines dead or dieing... the ship fell from the sky with a massive crash. but astoundingly, miraculously intact...

the crew took stock of their dead. they took stock of their injured. the latter far larger... but few dead aside from a vast swathe of yellow bloods. Stranded on planet until a new generation could be established.

the few that took the first few steps realized that they were no where near the ocean...they had no idea where on this vast planet they landed. The only thing they could see were the massive trees that sprouted up around them, they had landed in some kind of clearing.

the drones that weren't fried from radiation or broken on impact were set to work along with low bloods to begin felling trees, the highbloods desperate to establish a hatchery and begin raising the next engines. desperate to at least create smaller ships to cart their numbers to the ocean for a far more favorable base of operations.

yet as they begin to create facilities, as they began to create a small home out of logs and rubble they realized a grim truth. they wouldn't be able to survive in this small clearing for much longer. they wouldn't be able to create the housing needed to both keep and defend their mothergrub with exploration.

a violet looks out towards the tree line. their eyes kept flicking towards small signs of movement, small bits of white within the near pitch black. with the monster still fresh in their mind... they began to feel a bit more conscious of the blood within them and just how easily it could be spilt.

this violet would call for a scouting party.

[allykatsart]

Who is Peccantum?

Peccantum is an old OC of mine translated into Hazbin hotel! Here he is a sinner, a deer boi with anxiety, trauma and a deep craving for power!

After he died, Peccantum sought out and made a deal with a certain radio demon. Seven years later, it comes to bite him in the ass as Alastor calls upon him to work as Hazbin's hotel bellhop/magician/errand boy! Now he's thrown into these wacky adventures while trying to navigate a rocky relationship with his new boss.

More about Peccantum:

Comics-

Checking In

The Teleporting Thing with Alastor

Making Poison with Pentious

The Daughter of Lucifer

Cleaning Day with Nifty

Feeding the Power Hungry

Dead Air

Episode 3 Making Friends

Absolutely Flustered by Angel

Meeting Vox

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5

Peccantum's Deal

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3

Episode 5 Aftermath w/Husk

Episode 7 Aftermath w/Charlie

Post Episode 8 Part 1

Post Episode 8 Part 2 (TW:Blood/Violence/Slight gore)

Pancakes with Lucifer

Animations-

Cut My Hair - Animation

Animation - Magic Show!

Curiosity -- AU Animation

Esmeralda -- Animatic

Doodles-

Only Human After All

Height Chart

Houdini!

Happy Peccantum Sketch

Deer oh deer what have we here?

Shadows

?????????

Outfit- Ready for a Fight

Ears up

Ask Event!

Magic practice

Reaction Time

Dubs (Apparently???????)

AlyexVA

Peccantum's Deal Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Checking In

Rain melody

Checking in

Ep 7 aftermath

Asks-

What is Peccantum?

Styling Peccantum's hair

Deer in the headlights

Small Things

Peccantum's 'Stalker wall'

Non-Canon Crossover with Fallen Emily

Domestic Stuff

Peccantum's Past, Future, and Present

Betting on rivals

A quote from IMP

Houdini vs Alastor

Parental issues

Peccantum's Voice

Visiting Cannibal Colony

Sexual Orientation and Flirting

Ask Peccantum- Why Alastor?

Ask Peccantum- How did you live/die?

Vaggie's Reveal

[ecoterrorist-katara]

Hey bestie any zutara fic recs. I feel like I’ve read all the classics.

Hello anon! Oh boy have you come to the right place because I have read several million words of these two dorks falling in love and though I plan to read several million more, I am always down to screech about talented fanfic writers!!! Here are most of my faves, some of which you’ve probably read but my enthusiasm simply needs an outlet. No WIPs to minimize heartbreak.

In the spirit of not recommending too many classics, I’m not including anything from the first page of the Katara/Zuko tag on AO3 sorted by kudos, with one exception. Same rule does not apply to FF.net because nobody visits that site anymore, yet we mustn’t forget our roots!!! 

TL;DR of my Zutara Fic Recs: 

Half Asleep for a Miyazaki-esque adventure romance 

Southern Lights for a sweeping epic where A Song of Ice and Fire meets Middlemarch

Refraction for a swoon-worthy post-war political romance ft. Katara learning how to politick in a patriarchal world 

Stormbenders for a fun undercover romance that is a ZK classic for a very good reason 

Another Word for Alchemy and The Slow Path for hilarious yet emotionally compelling adventures with found family themes 

The Undying Fire for world-building, more Gaang shenanigans, and super satisfying slow canon divergence 

Katara Alone for our fave girl’s post-war Bildungsroman/travelogue/heroic tour

Simple Misunderstanding for a hilarious rendition of Ponytail Zuko capturing Katara and trying to not be a creep

Clothe Me in Seasons, Dress Me in Snow for a mostly canon-compliant (so, v angsty) story about the different ways that love can evolve 

And some one-shots and modern AUs I feel like deserve some more love 

Summaries, reviews, and general fangirling under the cut because holy shit this post is long lmao 

Long fics / series: 

Half Asleep, by crushinator | Rating: T | Word Count: 82,335

Summary: Five years after the Hundred-Year War, Fire Lord Zuko is hit with an assassin's dart, and falls into a coma from which he cannot wake. A week passes, and his prognosis is grim. But Katara could swear she hears him in her dreams.

My thoughts: this fic, in many ways, is novel quality. The pacing? Immaculate. The action scenes? Exciting and interesting yet super easy to visualize. The characterization? On point. Katara is peak Miyazaki heroine in this, setting out on a quest to the Spirit World to save her boy (who’s not really her boy) from whichever Eldritch horror has him in its clutches. I love the little glimpses we have of the mutual pining between Katara and Zuko, and there are no words to describe how much I love the resolution of Katara and Aang’s relationship in this story. And oh boy, is the climax of the fic super romantic. This is just a really well written, emotionally compelling, tight fic. Deserves to be a fandom classic. 

Southern Lights, by colourwhirled | Rating: M | Word Count: 769,274

Summary: A world where the Avatar has disappeared from memory. Where Sozin’s Conquest was successful. Where the unsteady order of the empire is threatened as members of the royal family are picked off one by one and lines are slowly drawn in the sand One last chance for peace forces an unlikely alliance between a homesick waterbender, a carefree Air Nomad, a runaway Earth Kingdom heiress, and the fire lord's inscrutable son. Together they must learn to shed old enmities and become the balance they seek to restore to the world.

OR:

The avatar has four heads.

My thoughts: Is it a Bildungsroman? Is it a war story? Is it a politics story? Is it a love story? Is it a friendship story? Is it a story about colonial violence and well-meaning complicity and finding justice in a world where it simply doesn’t seem to exist? Yes to all of the above, because at 700k+ words YOU CAN HAVE IT ALL. You know how Virginia Woolf once said that Middlemarch is one of the few novels written for grownups? Well, Southern Lights feels adult, not because of violence or sex or general grimness (looking at you, HBO), but because it’s fundamentally about having the courage to make choices, live with the consequences, and make more choices, and repeat that over and over again. If Katara is a Miyazaki heroine in Half Asleep, she is full on Daenarys (pre-character assassination) in Southern Lights, a heroine who gets put through her paces yet retains her unwavering resilience to find her place in the world. Katara can be pretty frustrating in this and I know a lot of the commenters on this fic wanted to smack her up the head halfway through, but I support women’s rights and women’s wrongs and her decisions make sense to me even when I also want to smack her for them, and isn’t that a symptom of good writing? I count my lucky stars that I joined the ATLA fandom after this fic is finished (which was only last year!) because I got to binge it in a few days and I have not been the same person since. Deserves classic status. 

Refraction, by caroe3725 | Rating: E | Word Count: 215,249

Summary: Making choices after the war was supposed to be the easy part. Her future decided and neatly packaged based on what everyone else wanted for her, what she should want, too. But Katara’s destiny had a funny way of being exactly what she wanted to run from. (As if anyone needed another Zutara post-finale slow burn after 15 years.)

My thoughts: YES WE DEFINITELY NEEDED ANOTHER POST-WAR ZK SLOWBURN OF SUCH IMMACULATE QUALITY. Both Katara and Zuko’s internal monologues are excellent in this, but I particularly love Zuko’s. The writer is so good at capturing his resolve, his earnestness, and his awkwardness. This is a very restrained fic — no great histrionics — but also incredibly romantic. The first kiss scene made me want to both sigh and screech. I’m also just a huge sucker for “Katara learns politics” which this fic has in spades, with a bonus of very thoughtful gender dynamics. Anyway, if you liked AJ Lenoire’s The Summit or andromeda13’s such selfish prayers, you’d probably like Refraction. Zuko and Katara are very much dumb teens in the beginning portions of this fic, which I personally like because it makes me nostalgic. Oh, and Katara is low key chaotic good in this, which is super in-character and hilarious.

Stormbenders, by Fandomme | Rating: T | Word Count: 171,000+ 

Summary: S3 AU from FBM. Deep in the Fire Nation jungle, the Gaang meets a group of rogue water ninja who send Zuko and Katara on a mission to retrieve Ozai's secret battle plans.

My thoughts: I’m aware that if you asked the average ZK shipper ten years ago what the ship classics are, the answers are probably Stormbenders, His Majesty Prefers Blue, and the Sparrowkeet series. The other classics are good (classics for a reason!), but Stormbenders remains my favourite. It’s funny. It’s exciting. It’s WELL PACED. The ZK relationship grows so organically, which is a huge feat considering this fic was started before we even got The Southern Raiders. The events are a little more adult than the show, but the tone remains very ATLA. There’s a lovely little animatic of the beginning of the scene on YouTube to show you exactly what I mean about the tone and the humour. I am always weak for a well-structured adventure romance, and Stormbenders stands the test of time because it’s just such a well-written fic. 

The Undying Fire, by Boogum | Rating: T | Word Count: 534,665

Summary: "He has the eyes, Princess Ursa." They were half-forgotten words, a whisper of fears never explained. Zuko had dismissed it all as nothing to worry about—until he somehow healed the Avatar. Fire healers weren't meant to exist, except he did. He'd saved the kid's life. Naturally, he wanted answers. Too bad finding them wasn't so simple...

My thoughts: This fic is mostly Gen, and Zutara shows up in the latter half of the series. Despite being a ZK shipper I like plenty of Gen fics too, and The Undying Fire gives me the best of both worlds. I love the world building, the humour, and the slow ramp up of the Gaang friendships. I absolutely love how the canon divergence is so subtle at first and gradually unfurls into something super different, yet retains much of its ATLA charm. Boogum’s written some other bangers too, and I have to give honorable mention to Zuko’s Tiny Dilemma (where a spirit transforms ponytail Zuko into his six-year-old self, and Uncle into a teapot, and somehow it becomes an emotionally compelling 100k word saga) and Following Blue (season 2 canon divergent Bluetara with a bigger focus on romance). 

Katara Alone & associated fics by cablesscutie | Rating: T | Word Count: 86,890

Summary: The war is over, and with it goes the only life she has ever known. In this era of love and peace, the world is becoming new, and Katara is unsure of her place in it. That's okay though. Katara has rebuilt her life from scratch before, and she will do it again.

My thoughts: I love post-war “Katara sets out to find herself and also finds Zuko” fics. Katara Alone is a fabulous coming-of-age story with some good old fashioned letter flirting during Katara’s solo travels. The sequel, Lady of the Tides, has some very thoughtful depictions of Katara’s place within the post-war Fire Nation, and the accompanying story from Zuko’s POV, The Fire Lord at Home, hits all my buttons. Like…Zuko is Fire Lord Good Boy! He passes legislation! There is political optimism! Swoon. 

Another Word for Alchemy, by FanPanda 13 | Rating: T | Word Count: 108,000+ 

Summary: Five years have passed since the Avatar defeated Fire Lord Ozai, and the members of the Gaang have all gone in their own direction. But when Aang invites them all to a Peace Summit at the North Pole and tells them of his new project, for which he will need their support, the group comes together again for adventure, fun and romance. AU. Zutara. COMPLETE.

My thoughts: Now this is a fic that thoroughly crept up on me. The first 3/4 is good old fashioned fluffy, funny, fourth wall-breaking Gaang shenanigans with plenty of Zutara. But the last quarter? Oh boy does it come right at you and slam you in the solar plexus with the platonic love and found family feels and the complexities of those feelings when you’re a teenager. The impact of Aang’s loss of the Air Nomads is treated very thoughtfully here, way more so than in the show. 

The Slow Path, by TazmainianDevil | Rating: T | Word Count: 125,723 

Summary: Eight years after the fall of Ozai, Aang returns to the friends he left behind.

My thoughts: This is actually a Taang story with a great ZK subplot. But what I love about it is that the whole Gaang (including Suki ALWAYS INCLUDING SUKI) is superbly characterized. The ZK banter is top notch. I could actually hear their voices in my head in some of the scenes. Their relationship is playful but has plenty of emotional heft. And the plot is exciting and well-developed. My favourite thing, though, is how the author treats Toph’s POV: it’s very thoughtfully written, with consideration towards how she perceives the world.

Simple Misunderstanding, by ShamelessLiar | Rating: T | Word Count: 80,965 

Summary: Katara was captured by Zuko, but there was a lapse in communication. Takes place after The Fortuneteller. Fierce Katara, honorable Zuko, and meddlesome Iroh. Also, music night

My thoughts: Generally I don’t love fics where Katara gets captured, especially by Zuko (just a personal preference, not here to judge). But! I love this one, because…well, the circumstances of Katara’s capture by Ponytail Zuko are simply hilarious. Katara is suspicious and stubborn; Zuko has a one-track mind and doesn’t understand why Iroh is treating his prisoner so nicely; oh, and Aang gets into an amazing side quest with some spiritual animals. The only thing about this story is that it ends a little abruptly since the author was considering a sequel, but it still reads as a standalone fic. The author also wrote His Majesty Prefers Blue and Call Me Katto, two ZK classics, but Simple Misunderstanding is far and away my favourite work. 

Clothe Me in Seasons, Dress Me in Snow, by sadladybug | Rating: T | Word Count: 62,026

Summary: It is not the memorial she deserves, nor the one she would want. But it can't be helped. He owns no property in the other nations, and he needed to keep her close. Closer than she was in life, anyway. Zuko's reflections on a life lived and a life that could have been.

Review: sadladybug lives up to the username by creating a sadness so contagious that I have yet to recover from it, and I cope by recommending this fic to other Zutara shippers so that more may suffer like I did. (Stop the cycle? No.) Look — I think there’s something extremely beautiful and poetic about a love that changes in nature and form and expression, but not in intensity and devotion, and that’s what this fic is about. Loved it. Never reading it again. 

One shots: 

There’s a category of canon-compliant Zutara one-shots that are all extremely painful, and I cannot get enough of them: in the next life by we-were-angels, taking place right before Katara’s wedding to Aang; water can heal, water can break by crazyache, about why Katara didn’t attend Yakone’s trial. 

To combat the above, here’s a few funny, fluffy ones that make me cackle: i am older now by ama (who wrote the banger that is The Blackfish and the Dragon), an old!ZK fic that I read to counteract the emotional damage inflicted by psychedelic_aya’s we hold our hearts in silence; all good things start with tea by yodalorian, where Zuko’s hapless Disney sidekick-esque advisors try to get him a wife; And Half at One Another’s Throats by songofhopeandhonor (whose account is deleted), about Zuko’s harebrained proposals to Katara; The Dragon of the West’s Guide to Flirting by bluesunflower44, which is exactly what it says on the tin and the awkward disaster you’d expect. Waiting on a Steady Sun, by nire, is a long version of my favourite tropes: fake marriage + idiots to lovers ft. pining for your spouse. 

I generally don’t love modern AUs, but akaiiko’s talk is cheap (and i’ve got expensive taste), where Katara meets Zuko at a frat party, is a whole damn delight; my old aches become new again by jamesstruttingpotter is a wonderfully indulgent modern AU based on Our Beloved Summer. 

And finally, some season 3 character studies: don’t tell me how to feel by paintingcranes, ft Katara at the Western Air Temple being increasingly incensed at both Zuko trying to be helpful and how other people react to his helpfulness; the other side of mercy by crazyache, where Sokka calls Katara “high-strung and crazy” and that really makes Zuko think; The Silent Garden by romilley (whose WIP The Horizon is also fabulous), where Katara and Zuko avoid their feelings through a reluctant-allies-with-benefits arrangement (ft a way of depicting intimacy and sex that makes me think of Normal People); a deep delight of the blood by eruthros, where Zuko asks Katara to practice bloodbending on him out of pragmatism but also a little bit of guilt (it’s unrated, but that “Kink Without Sex” tag is there for a reason). 

Thank you for asking me for my recs, anon, because I needed an outlet to rave about fanfiction and my irl friends have heard enough. Feel free to ask me questions about specific fics that aren’t on this list: I always love talking to people about fic and I’m always looking for new ones to read!

[s-che]

Monsterhearts 2: Plotting Anti-Plot

Last week I had the fortune to MC (and play) Monsterhearts 2 for the first time as the Dream Library begins a unit on monsters, monstrosity, and monsterfucking which will carry us through November, and boy howdy am I glad we managed to do it. 

For those who (somehow) don’t know, Monsterhearts is a game that bills itself as being about “the messy lives of teenage monsters.” It cites Twilight, Buffy, Ginger Snaps, The Vampire Diaries, and The Craft as media touchstones, it’s not joking when it says that these monsters are 1. messy and 2. teenagers. Monsterhearts is angsty, horny, frightening and, above all else, extremely fun to play. On top of that, Monsterhearts is also one of those games that, if you’re in a certain sector of the indie RPG scene, people will remind you is extremely fun to play all the fucking time. It feels sometimes like every designer I know has a good Monsterhearts story, and as much as Avery Alder’s reputation on a larger stage has been defined by The Quiet Year, I get the sense that for people who like what Monsterhearts is doing it’s an extremely hard game to beat. 

So to be totally honest, I was more than a little anxious MCing for my first time actually playing the game. There’s a sense in which hosting a game which you know is great can be way harder than hosting games you think might be bad — after all, if the session goes poorly, there’s nobody to blame but yourself. On top of that, Monsterhearts moves through some tricky territory: underage sex is a core element of the game, and the eight “Small Towns” (short, pre-prepped settings for quick starting the game) all deal more or less explicitly with histories of racism and colonialism in communities across North America. While these are interesting places to go in play, the idea of taking them on myself as host made me shy away a little bit (and I’m excited in the next session to look at things from a player’s perspective). 

All in all, though, I think the session was a resounding success. I went in with basically no prep and as much familiarity with the book as I could get (not enough to realize the quick reference sheet we were using for the first half of the session was from Monsterhearts 1, but so it goes), relying on the game itself — which leans away from strictly organized plots and encourages you, in true PBTA fashion, to let characters and their needs bounce off each other until the conversation goes somewhere interesting — to get us smoothly into play. I would call my efforts there a mixed success: while Avery has a real skill for writing pedagogically, giving you the explicit frameworks you need to get into play (if you’ve never begun a session of The Quiet Year by reading the rules book aloud to each other, you should go fix that now), the session was hampered a little by some awkward pacing and uncertainty: partially driven by my chronic tendency to waste time on slowly establishing things in one-shots rather than swinging as hard as I can in the first five minutes and letting the players lead from there and partially by player character relationships that lead to clear, decisive actions... which left one of our players bored at work while the other two went off adventuring. We ended up taking a moment, after returning from the normal mid-session bio-break, to chat and refocus ourselves, figuring out where we wanted to go and what we wanted to see in the last hour or so of the session, and then jumping back in and — thankfully — playing hard to reach a strong conclusion. In the end, I’m not interested in tracking down exactly where the first half of our session lost its footing (although I have some ideas for how I could have hit harder as an MC). I’m more interested in celebrating the way the table was able to come together, talk explicitly about what we wanted, and get the game somewhere satisfying for everyone involved. We closed on, among other things: an underwater fight between the Fairy (Mermaid?) Queen and a Kraken-Leviathan-Hellmonster, a throuple sneaking off from a beach party to hook up, and the messy end of a South Jersey summer (complete with a tsunami and a beached whale front of the boardwalk). It was a good time. 

Most striking to me in this moment, however, is the way thinking about Monsterhearts as a plotless game positions both me as MC and the other players. It really speaks to the way that capital-T The capital-C Conversation works in Powered by the Apocalypse games (good ones, anyway) to let play flow not according to the rules of a paced narrative, but along lines of player interest and highly-charged emotional incident. It is, I think, part of what makes all the PBTA games we’ve played in the Dream Library sing (in no small part because we pruned the last unit and didn’t play any PBTA games I think are bad, but that’s a different conversation) and it suits this game — with it’s emphasis on sex and messy desire — extremely well. It also fits in nicely with a point I’ve heard a couple of people make recently: that thinking of RPGs as first and foremost collective narrative engines is, at the very least, a narrow view. 

Anyway, this week I’m fortunate enough to be joined by a new host (hi @jdragsky) so I can check out MH as a player, then we’ve got a couple of two-shots planned for the end of the month before we move on to our next monstrously intimate game: Bluebeard’s Bride. You want in on an upcoming game? Have a link. You want to hear more about Monsterhearts? One of my players wrote up some of her thoughts as well.

Otherwise, well, get out of here. Scram.

[land-of-the-loch]

ALLEGIANCES (2) LOWER RANK

(the final installment! Character expanse under the cut.)

COOT

A lead warrior, she joined with her partner Parsley after finding out she was pregnant. Parsley knew they couldn’t stay with their house folk anymore due to lack of food and the fear of being separated from their kits, and needed community. Coot knew it was only a matter of time before something happened, and so she and Parsley took all they could and left. Ever since she’s taken up in the colony she’s proven herself as a formidable strategist and warrior, being Crows first in command and successor to the deputy position. With the loss of her partner, she is in shambles. Though strong willed; She will make sure their daughter knows her father.

RAIN

An old Molly, she’s joined with her daughter Fog after being a wandering soul her whole life. Her bones are weary and she feels herself slowing down, and doesn’t want her daughter to be lonelier as she is. Although a grizzled soul, she is kind and loving to her peers. She can fit through plenty nooks and crannies, which have proven helpful in the colonies travels whenever someone has gotten buried or something is high up. She keeps the boys and kittens busy with her tales, so her groupmates can talk serious matters. Though not a fighter, hunter or healer, she has proven invaluable in morale and support.

FOG

She’s quiet, and rather eerie compared to her friendly clanmates. She’s stoic but once she has something to stick by she puts the entirety of herself into it. These include rules, wanting to make sure her friends and family are the safest they can be. Though seemingly nothing but a living wall, she’s taken up the skill of her mothers words and often tells the kittens and Crow tales from before. Including their struggles, which she especially drills into the children to make sure they’re wary and cautious. Raven is often the most receptive of these stories, and helps Crane teach him survival skills.

MISTLETOE

Though not a Queen, she’s often found in the kittens den. She is a primary caretaker alongside Rain and any nursing mothers. She’s also quite independent, despite joining the group. She helps Coot come up with plans, though is more of a “good cop” to Coots harsh demeanor. She chose to leave her previous groups on her own terms, including her twolegs. She’s a wandering spirit, and clashes with Fog often; as she believes some rules are meant to be broken. She’s decided to stay for now, as she’s grown quite attached to the kids and is intrigued by Trouts “prophecies”.

SHADOW & MONKEY

Littermates found by Crane and Raven, they are considered family by most of the group. Shadow is the more curious one, ready to challenge the norm and new things. Though quiet, he’s firm to whatever beliefs a little kitten is able to have. This is in contrast to Monkey, who’s more reserved and often goes off on her own. She has this urge for something more, and hates being cooped up with Mistletoe. Monkey is the only one that wonders about their mother, and is tired of moving.

ASPHODEL

An old man, he joined with Daffodil with hopes of settling in his old age with his best friend. Though they haven’t settled yet, he wouldn’t leave everyone now. He’s set on staying and actually likes the more secure adventure. Daffodil wanted to leave at first, but the two could never separate. He’s an optimistic old fool, and quite the charmer! He’s seen so many things, and wouldn’t change it for the world. He hopes his last stop will be with more friends than he’s ever had.

CORMORANT

A quiet young man, he’s mostly unspeaking as Fog is. A best friend to Raven, he’s surprisingly a kindhearted soul. He’s a great listener, and doesn’t mind his clanmates talking to him for ages. For this reason he’s grown to be knowledgeable, and continues to learn more from his best friend Raven. With Crowflower as his mentor, he’s become quite the fighter and swimmer. As far as Raven knows, he used to be a Waverider as Trout was; so maybe he was always able to swim. He’s not very outward about his goals or reasons, but he hopes to have a home again. In the beauty of the water.

DAFFODIL

A cranky old coot, he was a Waverider for a long time before coming across Asphodel in his youth; and they went off without a hitch. He’s more stubborn than he was in his youth, and he firmly believe that attitude has kept them alive. A great fighter and adept swimmer, he’s done the bulk of the fighting for the duo. Plenty of scars are hidden beneath his raggedy fur, and takes pride in them. He and Fog are often the enforcers, though Daff is moreso a judgemental old grandpa talking to his grandkid. Though rough, he firmly believes in Trout; and despite initial doubts, he’d like to see this through.

[palant1r]

my boy Six!

He's got amnesia about his personal life from the gunshots but has other memories he can piece together to get an idea of his past. He's from the Western Shoshone nation, which is currently intermittently at war with the Legion, though that war has eased up as the Legion focuses its efforts on the NCR. He left home because he wanted to see the world, and being a courier allowed him to be a messenger between a ton of different tribal governments. Tribal governments after the war tend to use beads as currency, so he's got two very simple beaded necklaces as emergency funds.

He's a real smart cookie and has a silver tongue, and prefers to get out of situations without fighting if he can help it. This did not work out for him while trying to deal with families on the Strip, where despite fully intending to solve things peacefully, him and Veronica ended up having to beat their way out of both Gomorrah and the Ultra-Luxe.

Between his speech, lockpick and science skills, his ass is NOT being kept outta anything he wants to be in. And he loves being in locations and safes and systems and situations. Hates minding his own business.

He loves making friends, and started off his adventure just wanting to get his delivery back and then get back to his job, which he loves for the chance to meet new people and see new things. But the people he met along the way, from Boone's firsthand experience with Legion brutality to Cass's suffering at the hands of the current economic titans to Veronica's struggle to get the Brotherhood's head out of his ass, made him realize how much was at stake, and when he found out just how much power he had...well, Arcade's views on independence were the nail in the coffin, and Six has been fumbling around trying to figure out how the hell to overthrow three different governments and start a new one ever since.

He just joined the Followers of the Apocalypse, and is currently on fairly good terms with the NCR, though given how much they're dedicated to replicating settler colonialism there's no way he's letting them push past the Colorado.

He's a chronic junk hoarder, which has been made worse ever since he got the option to store shit at the Lucky 38. There is so much mac and cheese. So much armor. So, so much Sunset Sarsaparilla.

He's currently trying to use that Sunset Sarsaparilla to woo Arcade, and loves helping Arcade with his research.

hes my sweet cheese my good time boy and i am taking questions

[transbookoftheday]

🏳️‍⚧️🏴‍☠️ Trans Books To Read If You Love "Our Flag Means Death" 🏴‍☠️🏳️‍⚧️

Can't get enough of Our Flag Means Death? Read some trans pirate books!

On Mar León de la Rosa's sixteenth birthday, el Diablo comes calling. Mar is a transmasculine nonbinary teen pirate hiding a magical ability to manipulate fire and ice. But their magic isn't enough to reverse a wicked bargain made by their father, and now el Diablo has come to collect his payment: the soul of Mar's father and the entire crew of their ship. When Mar is miraculously rescued by the sole remaining pirate crew in the Caribbean, el Diablo returns to give them a choice: give up their soul to save their father by the harvest moon, or never see him again. The task is impossible - Mar refuses to make a bargain, and there's no way their magic is a match for el Diablo. Then Mar finds the most unlikely allies: Bas, an infuriatingly arrogant and handsome pirate - and the captain's son; and Dami, a gender-fluid demonio whose motives are never quite clear. For the first time in their life, Mar may have the courage to use their magic. It could be their only redemption - or it could mean certain death.

(The audiobook for "The Wicked Bargain" is narrated by Vico Ortiz!)

In a world divided by colonialism and threaded with magic, a desperate orphan turned pirate and a rebellious imperial lady find a connection on the high seas. Aboard the pirate ship Dove, Flora the girl takes on the identity of Florian the man to earn the respect and protection of the crew. For Flora, former starving urchin, the brutal life of a pirate is about survival: don’t trust, don’t stick out, and don’t feel. But on this voyage, Flora is drawn to the Lady Evelyn Hasegawa, who is headed to an arranged marriage she dreads. Flora doesn’t expect to be taken under Evelyn’s wing, and Evelyn doesn’t expect to find such a deep bond with the pirate Florian. Neither expects to fall in love. Soon the unlikely pair set in motion a wild escape that will free a captured mermaid (coveted for her blood) and involve the mysterious Pirate Supreme, an opportunistic witch, double agents, and the all-encompassing Sea herself. Deftly entwining swashbuckling action and quiet magic, Maggie Tokuda-Hall’s inventive debut novel conjures a diverse cast of characters seeking mastery over their fates while searching for answers to big questions about identity, power, and love.

The Lost Boys say that Peter Pan went back to England because of Wendy Darling, but Wendy is just an old life he left behind. Neverland is his real home. So when Peter returns to it after ten years in the real world, he's surprised to find a Neverland that no longer seems to need him. The only person who truly missed Peter is Captain James Hook, who is delighted to have his old rival back. But when a new war ignites between the Lost Boys and Hook's pirates, the ensuing bloodshed becomes all too real - and Peter's rivalry with Hook starts to blur into something far more complicated, sensual, and deadly.

In the Christian Republic, homosexual people are given two choices—a camp to "fix" them, or exile to the distant islands populated by lesbians and gay men. Sixteen-year-old Jason chooses exile and expects a hardscrabble life but instead finds a thriving, supportive community. While exploring his identity as a transgender boy he also discovers adventure: kraken attacks, naval battles, a flying island built by asexual people, and a daring escape involving glow-in-the-dark paint. He also has a desperate crush on Sky, a spirited buccaneer girl, but fear keeps him from expressing his feelings. When Jason and his companions discover the Republicans are planning a war of extermination, they rally the people of the Rainbow Islands to fight back. Shy, bookish Jason will have to find his inner courage or everything and everyone he loves will be lost forever.

Book titles:

The Wicked Bargain by Gabe Cole Novoa

The Mermaid, the Witch, and the Sea by Maggie Tokuda-Hall

Peter Darling by Austin Chant

Rainbow Islands by Devin Harnois

[whencyclopedia]

African Americans in the American Revolution

On the eve of the American Revolution (1765-1789), the Thirteen Colonies had a population of roughly 2.1 million people. Around 500,000 of these were African Americans, of whom approximately 450,000 were enslaved. Comprising such a large percentage of the population, African Americans naturally played a vital role in the Revolution, on both the Patriot and Loyalist sides.

Black Patriots

On 5 March 1770, a mob of around 300 American Patriots accosted nine British soldiers on King Street in Boston, Massachusetts. Outraged by the British occupation of their city, as well as the recent murder of an 11-year-old boy, the crowd was filled with Bostonians from all walks of life; among them was Crispus Attucks, a mixed-race sailor commonly thought to have been of African and Native American descent. When the British soldiers fired into the crowd, Attucks was struck twice in the chest and was believed to have been the first to die in what became known as the Boston Massacre. He is regarded, therefore, as the first casualty of the American Revolution and has often been celebrated as a martyr for American liberty.

Five years later, in the early morning hours of 19 April 1775, a column of British soldiers was on its way to seize the colonial munitions stored at Concord, Massachusetts, when it was confronted by 77 Patriot militiamen on Lexington Green. Standing in this cluster of militia was Prince Estabrook, one of the few enslaved men to reside in Lexington, who had picked up a musket and joined his white neighbors in defending his home. In the ensuing Battles of Lexington and Concord, Estabrook was wounded in the shoulder but recovered in time to join the Continental Army two months later. He was selected to guard the army headquarters at Cambridge during the Battle of Bunker Hill (17 June 1775) and was freed from slavery at the end of the war.

Attucks and Estabrook were just two of the tens of thousands of Black Americans who supported the American Revolution. There was no single motivation for their doing so. Some, of course, were inspired by the rhetoric of white revolutionary leaders, who used words like 'slavery' to describe the condition of the Thirteen Colonies under Parliamentary rule and promised to forge a new society built on liberty and equality. These words obviously appealed to the enslaved population, many of whom were optimistic that, even if slavery was not entirely abolished, they might receive better opportunities in this new nation. Others enlisted in the Continental Army to secure their individual freedoms, as the Second Continental Congress had proclaimed that any enslaved man who fought the British would be granted his freedom at the end of his service. African Americans also enlisted to escape the day-to-day horrors of slavery, to collect the bounties and soldiers' pay offered by recruiters, or simply because they were drawn to the adventure of a soldier's life. Additionally, several Black Americans were forced to enlist by their Patriot masters, who preferred to send their slaves to fight instead of going themselves.

Of course, not all Black Patriots served in the Continental Army or Patriot militias. Some, like James Armistead Lafayette, were spies; posing as a runaway slave, Lafayette was able to infiltrate the British camp of Lord Charles Cornwallis and procure vital information that helped lead to the Patriot victory at the Siege of Yorktown. The French general Marquis de Lafayette was impressed with his service and helped procure his freedom after the war, leading James Lafayette to adopt the marquis' name.

Other Black Patriots showed their support for the movement with their words. Phillis Wheatley was an enslaved young woman who had been brought to Boston from Senegal, where she had been seized. She was purchased by the Wheatley family, who quickly recognized her literary talents and encouraged her to write poetry. By the early 1770s, Phillis Wheatley was already a celebrated poet. She began to write extensively on the virtues of the American Revolution, praising Patriot leaders like George Washington. Despite his status as a slaveholder, Washington was moved by Wheatley's work and invited her to meet him, stating that he would be honored "to see a person so favored by the muses" (Philbrick, 538).

Continue reading...

[cipheramnesia]

A Girl And Her Dog - A tribute/fuck you to "A Boy & His Dog," Viktor Blud is the telepathic despot of the Gravestone River, but that won't stop Rosalie and her dog Champion from going after him to take their revenge. Champ is more of a borzoi pangolin monstrosity than a dog but let's not get picky. The setting is a sort of post apocalyptic weird west on the planet where gods go to die. As seen in Lisa Frank Gulch.

Short Change Hero - Down on her luck two and a half foot ex-allotment farmer turned hopeful adventurer turned disillusioned bouncer / part time leg-breaker Obsidian Bonesplinter didn't want to rock the boat but when her old family shows up in the magical city Eliriad they get caught up in a bad way. Now she's got a dead body to explain and a murder to solve if she doesn't want the cops to pin it all on her and the only roommate she ever had with a steady job. A hardboiled noir mystery taking place in a fantasy world of magic and elves and fantastical creatures.

Saw Down Heaven - Follow up to Girl Bites God, a ragtag band of queers and superhumans try to drive police out of their local community and set up a patrol free zone outside of the reach of law enforcement and, worse, the FCC. With the help of the mutant ringworm colony and hole in reality which together animate the undead corpse of Alice Buzzsaw (aka the Suicide Gorgon) and escaped mental patient AthenA Six, maybe they can pull it off. Takes place in the disentangled world, a setting where our world is slowly being folded into a parallel reality where physical matter never existed.

[holdupjack]

The Captains Princess Pt.2

——————

Part 1

Pairing: Hermione Granger x Fem!Reader

AU: Pirates and Royalty

WARNING: SMUT 18+/MINORS DNI

——————

Third Person P.O.V:

November 24th, 1655

Hermione sat at her desk as sea shanties were muffled by the closed doors behind her. Her eyes darted around the map she was given by her captain earlier today.

They had stopped at one of the fishing towns in the American Colonies to resupply and trade for various items the crew needed. Y/n said they had been here multiple times before, and decided to wake Hermione in the early morning when they arrived.

Hermione had to keep her head down for the most part during their journey around the world. It quickly spread about what had happened in her home country, and an enormous bounty had been set on Y/n's head.

Well, a bigger bounty at least.

It had been barely three in the morning when she was awoken, Y/n smiling as she whispered about taking her around the town before anyone competent was awake.

Hermione was out the door when she was given the 'go ahead' by the Captain to see the foreign land she dreamed of.

Y/n chuckled as she grabbed her bag of coins from the shelf near the door, and jogged after her.

"Are you sure? Do you think it's safe for me to go off ship?" Hermione asks as she slips on her coat, looking over the sleeping town. Y/n hummed as she greeted Draco and switched head apparel with him, much to his dismay.

The Captain's hat was smaller on him, but he knew Y/n couldn't go out looking like her description. So, he begrudgingly gave up his dark grey bandanna.

"As long as we don't bring any attention to ourselves, then we'll be fine." Y/n hummed as she watched Hermione put her hair into a tight bun.

"Are you warning yourself or me?" Hermione asks with a smirk of teasing as she watches the seasoned leader walk onto the board and hold out her hand.

"Depends, do you plan to join me in some hijinks?" Y/n asks as Hermione takes her hand and travels onto the dock with the Captain.

"What kind of hijinks, Cap?" Hermione asks as their hands drop, but Y/n is quick to hold out her arm for her to take.

"Might pickpocket the wealthy, charm a few women...who knows what this night will entail?" Y/n says as Hermione takes her arm as they walk down the dock. The young former Princess hummed softly as the lanterns guided their way onto the mainland.

"Can we explore a little before we are run out?" Hermione asks with a chuckle as she let her eyes roam the buildings that stood near the bay.

"For you, Princess? I'll be on my best behavior" Y/n says as they walk further into town, the road seems to be deserted, but the houses have soft lighting shining out the window.

"I know you said you wanted a life with adventure, but do you ever think about settling down in the future?" Y/n asks as their eyes peered into the home to their left, a man and woman were asleep on the couch as their child lay between them.

"Maybe, depends if I find someone worth settling with," Hermione says as they walk by, before looking back at the emptiness of the street in front of them.

It was silent for a block before Hermione retorted with the same question.

"What about you, do you ever see yourself giving up the helm?" She asks to which Y/n gives her a flirtatious smirk and pulls her closer.

"Only for you" she states to which Hermione rolled her eyes and looked back in front of her. Their 'relationship' had been changing slowly but surely, both of them getting more comfortable as time went on.

"You are saying that just to get a rise out of me" Hermione chuckles softly as they walk down an empty alleyway when a couple begins to approach them.

"Is it working?" Y/n asks as they walk out onto another sidewalk, Hermione just pats her stomach.

"If that helps you sleep at night" she responds as they watch a horse-drawn wagon go by with a young boy sleeping in the back, newspapers all around him.

(A/N: Newspapers were invented in 1605)

"What about kids?" Y/n asks as they start walking toward the town square. The sky was getting brighter, but the sun had yet to show itself. The black sky was turning to blue above them.

"Kids? I never gave it much thought until marriage was being put upon me" Hermione mutters as her fingertips brush the Captain's wrist.

"Not one Prince piqued your interest? Made you wonder how pretty your kids would be with them?" Y/n asks with a grin as the former Princess huffs in annoyance, pinching her forearm in silent protest.

"No! I was sixteen when they started spewing about marriage and 'carrying on the lineage'." she states as they walk past a big courthouse, they have announcements posted for weddings this weekend. Ironic.

"Ah, you were thinking about what to name your new pony and what kind of dessert you wanted for your birthday party" Y/n teased as Hermione reached up and smacked her forehead.

"I said sixteen, not six" Hermione says with a roll of her eyes as Y/n snickered as they stopped in front of a library across the street. The Captain would see the intrigue in her eyes, and couldn't help but bump her shoulder.

"Want to explore inside? It says it's open" Y/n says as she begins to pull Hermione with her, who was trying to put her feet on the ground at this point.

"Are you crazy?! What if someone recognizes us?" she whispers as the stronger girl pulls her towards the library. Their hands interlocked as Hermione was tugged across the street, Y/n had a grin on her face.

"You know how to run, don't you?" she replies with a grin as they slip through the front door, Hermione grasped the back of Y/n's shirt with her other hand in pure nervousness.

The librarian didn't even bother looking up as she wrote down something in a journal, the two quietly walked down the aisles, Hermione's eyes sparkled as she let go of Y/n's hand. Yet she kept a hand on her though, not letting the sneaky captain out of her orbit.

"Too bad I can't take them all with me" Hermione whispers as her free hand skims along the spines of the books.

"Steal one" Y/n whispers with a smirk and Hermione rolls her eyes, a smile of her own being revealed.

"You haven't rubbed off on me yet" she chuckled as she pulled Y/n with her down the row.

"You haven't let me yet do that yet..." Y/n grumbled as Hermione smacked her stomach again.

"Rubbed off, not on" Hermione flushed with a harsh whisper as Y/n snicked again, enjoying making the well-mannered girl blush.

Hermione mumbled small curses as she pulled Y/n down the row, feeling the sensation of the Captain staring at the back of her head.

"Stop staring" Hermione states as her face fights the redness away from her cheeks. Y/n quietly snickered as she ran into the back of the Princess when she wasn't looking.

They stumble slightly as Hermione places a hand on her chest as she peeks around the corner.

The sheriff stood near a bulletin board, nailing a wanted and missing persons poster on it.

WANTED:

Y/N Y/L/N

WANTED DEAD OR ALIVE

REWARD:

$50,000

"Dammit, the news made it here too" Hermione whispered as Y/n wrapped her arms around the girl's waist.

MISSING PERSONS:

HERMIONE GRANGER

PRINCESS OF ICELANDIA

BROWN HAIR

BROWN EYES

5'5

145 POUNDS

REWARD:

$5,000

"Why are you worth more than me? I'm the Princess!" Hermione grumbled as Y/n rested her chin on the brunette's shoulder and peeked around the corner.

"It was added on, it was forty-five thousand before" Y/n whispers as the Sheriff walks away, they can hear the opening and closing of the front doors.

"We need to get back to the ship, this is bad" Hermione mumbles back as she slips from Y/n's grasp and carefully steps down the small walkway on the other side of the shelves, out of the librarian's sight.

"You worry too much" Y/n whispers as she follows nonchalantly, while Hermione tries to be as inconspicuous as possible. Which just made her stand out more.

"You need to worry more!" Hermione whispers back as she hides around corners, while Y/n simply walks past her and toward the bulletin board.

"Y/n!" She called out softly as the Captain simply walked up and quietly ripped off the posters. The Librarian didn't even bother to look up again, she wasn't paid enough to care.

Y/n threw out the posters, but when she turned around, Hermione grabbed the front of her shirt and yanked her out of sight.

A little too hard actually, because Y/n ended up slamming into her, knocking them both to the ground. They land with a loud thud, Y/n landing on top of Hermione with a soft 'huff'.

"Is everything alright?" The librarian calls out, but from the sound of her voice, she still didn't give a rat's ass.

"Yes, just dropped a book!" The Captain replies as the librarian just hums in response. Hermione covered her mouth as she fought back some laughter, Y/n looked at her with a smile as she loomed over her.

"Are you alright Princess?" She whispers as Hermione buries her face in Y/n's shirt to muffle her embarrassed giggles.

"I hate you sometimes, you make me do the most idiotic things" Hermione whispered against her neck when she turned to unmute herself. A shiver ran across Y/n's spine as her breath wafted over her skin.

"That 'hate' of yours isn't strong enough to make you walk away" Y/n replied as she mumbled against her ear, she felt Hermione's grasp tighten on her shirt.

"Yet" she whispers back, but that only makes the Captain chuckle softly.

"Don't lie. Princesses don't lie" the Captain says as she hears the soft hitch of a gasp from Hermione's throat. Y/n pressed her nails into the wood of the floor next to the girl's head, fighting the urge to do something...'impolite' as the former royal would call it.

They stared at one another, the threat of getting caught growing more and more by the second.

"Hermione..." Y/n whispers as their lips brush, and a chill runs down the brunette's spine, her own nails digging into the captain's shoulders when she trailed her hands up to them.

"Sometimes I ask myself if you're a Siren in disguise... controlling my very self with your beauty and song" Y/n mumbled at her eyes hooded, teasing another kiss. Hermione bit back a gasp as her body began to burn.

To burn for her Captain.

They soon heard the front doors open again and more voices. It looks like their moment has to end. For now.

"Come on my lovely Siren, it's time to leave" Y/n whispers as she stands up and helps Hermione to her feet, who looked like she was ready to burst with flames from her cheeks.

Their hands intertwined as Y/n quickly zigzagged them through shelves upon shelves of literature. They eventually made it to an unlocked back door, they slipped through without anyone at the wiser.

There was a stairway that led back down to the town, their feet tumbled into a back alley. Hermione looked at Y/n as she looked up and down the small back street.

Hermione could feel her pulse point thumping against the skin of her neck. Her body felt like it was on fire. Her mind was screaming for something they couldn't do here.

Kisses. Touches. Love.

"Y/n" Hermione whispers desperately as the captain pulls her down to the crossroads, their hands squeeze for a moment.

"Yes?" Y/n replies as they look up and down the street, it is still pretty empty, but it won't be for long now that the sun is beginning to peak over the horizon.

"We have to get back to the ship" Hermione says as Y/n pulls her quickly down the street, they could see the crow's nest of the Morrigan, its black flag waved them home over the rooftops.

"Don't worry Princess, I'll get us to safety" Y/n chuckled as they sped through the alleyways and behind businesses.

Suddenly Hermione yanked her back, and Y/n stumbled backward, running into the brick wall behind a barber shop. The sun now peaked out enough to shine a sharp shadow just under Hermione's eyes.

Her irises shined like cinnamon under a lantern.

The Captain's breath got caught in her throat, their eyes caught in a gaze that was just pure yearning.

"My captain...you've done it" Hermione whispers as she kisses the corner of the sailor's mouth, sending a shiver down her spine.

"Done what?"

Hermione let her lips trail down Y/n's jaw, her teeth nipped and brushed against the sensitive skin, she seemed to be fighting back to urge to bite.

"You've finally broken my stance. My feet are no longer dug in the ground. I want you. I need you.

Y/n grasped the royals hips, nails digging slightly into her skin, but she didn't mind. She liked it.

"Siren..."

That nickname again. Why did it sound so good coming from her? Where is the 'my' in front of it?

"Yours. If you're going to call me that, at least stake your claim" Hermione whispers as her kisses trail down to the leader's neck. The sun was getting higher in the sky, and the alleyway wasn't going to hide their activities for much longer. They could hear horses, people, and wagons starting to fill the streets.

"Apologies, my siren" Y/n chuckled as she brushed her nose against the princess's cheek, capturing her attention.

A small kiss was shared. It had been their first kiss in months ever since the night they met. Life was going by too quickly already.

Hermione can't let herself live this new adventurous life without taking a chance on the flirty seawoman.

Their eyes met, staring intently at one another as if they could read what the other was thinking.

A loud pop echoed from the docks, causing the girls to widen their eyes. A gunshot. It could be nothing, or their ship is currently a sitting duck.

"We have to go" Y/n says as she grasped Hermione's hand and dashed down to the bay. Another gunshot was heard, their hands squeezed, and nervousness racked through their bodies.

They ran for a few more blocks until they reached the harbor, a large group of civilians stood at the seam between the wood and earth. They murmured to themselves as yelling was heard from one of the Weasley twins.

"You sir, are as attractive as the underside of my sack!"

"That's rude. Are you saying my sack is ugly too?"

"We're not that identical Freddie"

Y/n squeezes through the crowd, and Hermione follows suit as their hands drop from one another's.

The whole police force was standing guard around the ship. Their own vessels making their way towards the Morrigan.

They didn't have much time. Soon they would be surrounded. Y/n turned to Hermione and leaned down to whisper her in ear.

"Swim to the other side of the ship and climb up the ladder. Hide in our living quarters." she says in such hushed tones, that Hermione almost missed it.

"What? No-"

"Hermione. This isn't the time to argue. Please."

The Princess looked at her, forgetting for a moment that they were surrounded by more danger that she wouldn't truly realize until later.

"Alright"

Y/n pushed her back into the crowd and turned toward the swarm of officials, a drip of anxiousness fell into her stomach, but she just flexed and loosened her hand before walking towards them.

Hermione sped toward another strip of dock and climbed down the ladder that sunk into the cold water.

"Fuck!" she whisper as goosebumps raised over her skin, her clothes moved within the water as she swam to the other side of the ship. Pansy was already waiting for her, almost like she expected her to come this way.

Did Y/n already get back on the ship?

As her hands grabbed the ladder that was carved into the side of the ship, another gunshot went off, causing Pansy to look over her shoulder.

Yelling and clanks of swords started to grow, Pansy looked back at Hermione and widened her eyes.

"Come on!" she yells as she holds out her hand.

Hermione climbed quickly as she grasped the raven-haired girl's hand, getting yanked onto the deck of the ship.

Water dripped onto the wood as she watched as a few of the boys blocked the boardwalk from letting law enforcement get on the ship.

Pansy grasped Hermione's forearm and pulled her into the captain's quarters, she could hear a few Colony men calling her name. They asked if she was 'okay'.

Okay?

She'll be 'okay' once her Captain is in her view again.

Hermione was left in the room, the door locked behind her as the sound of fighting got even louder.

Water continued to fall from her clothes, her body shivered from the cool air. She listened intently as she grabbed the sword mounted above Y/n's cot.

Hermione pointed it at the door, her breath steady as she leaned against the captain's desk. Y/n had taught her how to fight, how to fire a gun, how to sword fight.

But, Y/n swore to her that she wouldn't let those skills ever be used by her while she was still breathing.

Now, Hermione had no idea if her protector was even alive. She looked over her shoulder a moment, they were moving.

She scrambled to the window in front of her desk, watching as bodies lay in the water and dock. None she recognized, but she couldn't see past the lawmen who still stood on the wooden pathway.

Fighting was still ongoing out on the deck, she turned back towards the door, almost like she thought someone would have snuck into the room without alerting her.

There was no one.

Her eyes flew back to the window, there were two Brigantine ships from the Continental Army following after them at full mast.

Hermione crumbled. She hides under her superior's desk. Tears clouded her eyes as she kept the sword at her side.

She felt herself go back to being a scared little girl. The one she hated. The one that almost made her stay back to live a miserable life.

Cannon fire started to fly past the ship, making her cry harder as she hugged her knees.

The princess felt like the little girl who cried when she thought her life would never be the same when the volcano had killed more than half her kingdom.

What a sorry excuse for a 'pirate'.

——————

Hours had passed. Y/n stood on the deck as they escaped through the dense patch of fog that headed out further into the ocean.

They were safe. No one was lost or injured. The Captain let out a sigh of relief as she stood next to Draco at the wheel.

"Once we're out of this fog, head east" she mumbles as she placed his grey bandanna back on his head and held her hat in her hand.

"Aye-Aye" he replied as Y/n walked back onto the main deck and watched as Ron and Harry tossed the dead bodies overboard, praying for forgiveness quietly.

Y/n sighed again as she walked towards her quarters, Pansy unlocked it for her and handed the key back.

The Captain thanked her softly as she walked in and closed the door. She looked around for her royal passenger but didn't find her. Panic.

"Hermione?" Y/n called out as she started to check every corner. Did someone take her?

Impossible! The door was locked-

"Here"

Her voice was soft, too soft for Y/n's liking. She walked around her desk and noticed the sword next to a curled-up Hermione.

Y/n slowly moved her chair and sat down on the floor, looking at her with a soft smile. She noticed the red dryness in her eyes, and a part of the Captain's heart chipped because of it, she pushed away the sword.

"Are you okay?" Y/n asks as Hermione looks over at her, resting her head against her knees.

"Yes"

Y/n sighed softly as she scooted under the desk, forcing Hermione to laugh softly as she was smooshed against the wood.

"We're nothing not both going to fit!" She says as Y/n is still halfway peeking out from the small space.

"You're right" the Captain hums as she thinks for a moment before pulling Hermione onto her lap and scooting completely under the desk.

"Y/n!" Hermione whispers with a laugh as she grasps the front of her superior's shirt, her face going back into the girl's shoulder like it did in the library.

"There! We can be gloomy together!" She chuckled as Hermione relaxed against her, feeling her hands travel up and down her back.

It's quiet for a while, only the creaking of the ship is heard as they sit under that desk. Hermione's hand landed on the space below Y/n's ear, her fingernails gently scratching the baby hairs on the back of her neck.

"I'm sorry" she whispers as her nose brushed against the other side of Y/n's neck.

"Sorry? For what?"

"Hiding"

Y/n pinched her brows in confusion. This was a common response when something like this happened. Also, this was Hermione's first real brush with death. They hadn't been in any danger while Hermione had been with them.

The crew called her a good luck charm. Y/n had to now agree after seeing how they escaped by the skin of their teeth.

"I told you to hide" Y/n whispers as the ship rocks back and forth. She placed her foot on the side of the desk to stop them from moving too much, but that only seemed to press Hermione against her even more as Y/n's knee took up more of the limited space.

"I'm part of this crew-" Hermione started as her legs straddled the sides of Y/n's waist.

"And I'm the captain. I gave you an order and you did exactly what I asked" she replied as they looked at one another.

"Y/n-"

"Siren"

Hermione sighed and laid her forehead against hers, she knew there was no use fighting the stubborn girl. That stupid nickname also quieted her down fairly easily as well.

"Why won't you just let me wallow in self-pity and hatred" Hermione sighed as Y/n just chuckled softly and kissed her cheek.

"Because you're not a pirate, you're an adventurer! There's a difference" Y/n explains as Hermione kisses her cheek back, and just hums in dissatisfaction.

"There really isn't," she says as Y/n presses her lips against the girl's jaw, causing a shiver to run down her spine again.

"Just listen to your dear old Cap, okay?" Y/n hums as Hermione sighs, but nods anyways. There was really no use in arguing.

"Fine...but I'm going to wallow for a bit more" Hermione says as she tries to get out from under the desk, but Y/n quickly pulls her back.

"No, no, no, no" she whines as she buries her face against the princess's neck. Hermione flushed as she was (happily) held captive by her leader.

This was the ruthless Captain that took a princess and stole more money than she would ever need...

That same Captain was now begging the said Princess to stay cuddled up under her desk...it was like night and day.

"I have to figure out where we are, and where we should go next," Hermione says as Y/n groans unhappily and hugs her once last time.

"Fine, fine...how about a kiss for the road since we were so rudely interrupted earlier" she says with a devilish grin, but Hermione just rolls her eyes as she pulls away from her leader's grasp and stands up.

"The moment is gone, but nice try Captain" Hermione chuckled as she grabbed the map from her desk and walked away.

"Siren!"

Y/n was left alone as she sat under her desk with an unhappy huff.

——————

It was now late into the night, the ship groaned softly as they sailed through a small rainstorm. Y/n lay on her cot as Hermione slept on her own in the corner on the other side of the room.

Y/n's eyes burned into the ceiling as she thought about what had happened this morning. So close. So close to showing her favorite Royal how much she'd crumble without her.

Hermione was also awake. Her own gaze locked on the wall in front of her as she kept her back towards Y/n, afraid to somehow show how much she had been replaying their encounter from this morning.

Her thighs squeezed together for a moment as a certain fantasy flashed through her mind. Dammit. Dammit. Dammit.

Damn, that sultry captain!

Hermione slowly sat up, turning her body towards Y/n, who was still staring at the ceiling.

"Y/n" Hermione whispers, to which the Captain immediately looks at her with a raised eyebrow. The Princess had to grasp the bedsheets to stop herself from entirely running over to her in a pathetic, desperate, needy nature.

She was better than that.

"You...you are the Devil in disguise, aren't you?" Hermione asks as Y/n smirks and sits up in her own cot, her arms placed behind her to hold up the top half of her body.

"The Devil? That's high praise coming from you" the Captain replied as her eyes dragged around Hermione's body, causing the brunette to puff her chest out of nervousness.

"Most consider that an insult"

"Are you saying it with disdain?"

"...no"

Y/n chuckled softly as Hermione stood up and hid her flushed face in the darkness of the room, but she knew Y/n could sense her anxiousness.

"Why with the sudden compliment, my Siren?" Y/n asks as her gaze follows the girl's silhouette as it moves around their desks and stops only a few feet away. Fucking nickname.

"You know why" Hermione replies as she sits down on Y/n's desk, her legs crossed over the other.

Y/n stood up from her cot and slowly walked toward Hermione, her footsteps were quiet, but it still made an impact between them.

Hermione felt her heart begin to pound against her ribcage, the twilight of the night hiding the passion both of them stared at one another with. The navigator made the first move, her hand reaching out as her legs uncrossed.

Y/n felt herself be guided by a gentle tug of the front of her shirt, her hands landing on the wood on either side of Hermione's thighs.

"If we do this, it won't be just a forgotten night to me" Y/n whispers as her hips spread Hermione's legs apart, a soft breath was taken by the brunette. Their faces were a few inches apart, and a moonlight-filled backdrop spilled through the window behind Hermione.

Enough light came through for the Princess to see Y/n's eyes. They were filled with something she used to think was just flirtation. What she thought was simple teasing from her leader.

No. It was devotion.

Y/n didn't just want her for a night of passion, she wanted her for every moment they could have together.

"I know" Hermione whispers back as her hands grasp the side of Y/n's face and pull her in for a kiss.

When their lips touched once again since earlier in the morning, a burning warmth filled their chests. Y/n's hands grasped Hermione's waist, her fingertips pressing down enough to hold her still.

Their bodies pressed closer as they chased after kisses, both not wanting to give up the heaven-like feeling that their emotions poured out silently.

Hermione nightgown was making her feel confined. It was an obstacle she hadn't thought was going to annoy her so much.

Off. It needed to be off. Now.

"Y/n" Hermione whispered as she felt the euphoric kisses start to trail down her jaw, then to her neck.

"Shhhh..." Y/n hushed against her skin as she moved careful hands down Hermione's nightgown, they landed on the space between her knees and the hem of her clothing.

The brunette gave a ragged breath again, her head bobbing back as she placed her elbows down on the desk below her. Y/n leaned down with her as she softly teased the skin of Hermione's neck with a playful bite.

Y/n's hands slowly grazed up her thighs, slipping under the nightgown as once again, another sharp breath was taken by Hermione.

It sounded as if she was having the wind knocked out of her by her sailor's simple touch. A moan escaped her lips as she felt Y/n massage her thighs tenderly.

Hermione took one of her hands and brought Y/n's face up to hers, sharing a kiss that had her heart squeezing and punching out of her chest.

Slowly her undergarments were pulled away from her hips, falling to her ankles. This was it. She was giving herself to the woman who took her away from her miserable life.

But Y/n suddenly stopped, looking at Hermione with a small bit of hesitance laced in her stare. The brunette grasped her face and furrowed her eyebrows in confusion.

"What is it?" she whispers, a pang of anxiety shot through her stomach. Did she read this wrong? Did she read everything wrong?

"Are you sure this is what you want?" Y/n asks quietly, to which Hermione's eyes widen as she immediately nods her head.

"Yes. Yes, please say you want the same" Hermione whispers as she kisses Y/n's nose, feeling the girl's head vibrate as she chuckles.

Hermione didn't like how desperate she sounded, but then again, she didn't think she could explain her want any better.

"I do" Y/n replied as their lips touched again.

The former royalty couldn't take it anymore. She needed to feel Y/n on her skin. The heat from her nightgown was suffocating. Maybe it was just in her head, but she didn't care.

"Darling, please" Hermione begged softly when their lips parted, she felt Y/n's fingertips trailing up and down the paths between her thighs and stomach.

Y/n smirked as she helped Hermione out of the thin fabric, watching as the girl's body seemed to relax as the cold air hit it. Her back arched as her ribs showed from under her skin, every deep breath protruded her breasts for Y/n.

Hermione felt Y/n kiss her collarbone as she shredded her own clothes, kicking them somewhere behind her.

Their skin touched like fire to ice, if Hermione could see better in the dark, she wouldn't be surprised to find steam clouding up the room.

"Hermione" Y/n whispered as her forehead rested on the brunette, capturing her attention immediately.

"You're more than a navigator to me" she says.

Hermione knew what this truly meant. Y/n has never been good at showing her feelings in a detailed way, but that just meant Hermione learned the secrets behind every sentence she uttered.

"You've always been more than a Captain" she replies quietly as her arms wrap around Y/n's neck, pulling her down for another kiss.

She could feel Y/n's hands run along the insides of her thighs, causing her to shiver as a result. This was heaven on earth. There can't be anything better than this, and if there is, then it has to be because Y/n is in that moment too.

Y/n's hand crept closer and teased Hermione's folds, tracing them with her fingertips as the poor brunette shivered with every touch.

Hermione's lips found solace on Y/n's chest, letting her touch slowly glide over her lover's sensitive bud. To hear a soft moan leave the Captain's throat was like listening to a holy choir, and Hermione couldn't get enough.

Her breath hitched as Y/n's two slender fingers sunk into her slowly, sending waves of pleasure coursing through her body. She arched her back, silently begging for more. Y/n's fingers moved skillfully, her every movement producing a dirty groan from Hermione's mouth.

"Yes" she breathed as she kissed Y/n's neck, feeling her pulse point bumping against her tongue.

As their bodies moved with a rhythm only they could create, Hermione couldn't help but marvel at the way Y/n's touch ignited her body. Every brush of their skin sent waves of pleasure coursing through her veins, leaving her breathless and craving for more.

She could feel Y/n's fingers slowly pumping within her, spreading her deliciously and methodically.

Y/n's lips explored every inch of Hermione's body, leaving a trail of wet kisses along her neck, collarbone, and down to her chest. The gentle graze of Y/n's teeth on her sensitive skin made Hermione gasp, her nails digging into Y/n's back as she arched with pleasure.

"My Captain, please-" Hermione begged, wanting the agonizingly slow pace to end. Her legs spread more silently submitting to anything she had to offer her body.

Y/n kissed farther down her body, leaving a few marks in her wake as she went down further. She felt Hermione's hands grasp her hair, pushing her closer to the neglected bud that was waiting to be touched.

Hermione stared at the ceiling as she felt her lover's slick tongue glide against her clit, making her back arch and her head hand off the other edge of the desk.

"Oh fuck" she moans as her hands held Y/n's head in place. Her eyes were blurry as she looked out the window, watching as the moonlit water was now upside down from her position.

Their passion intensified, creating an undeniable chemistry that seemed to consume the room. Y/n's fingers moved slightly faster, causing the dirty sounds of Hermione's entrance to get louder in their shared room.

The brunette felt her body tremble for a split second as Y/n began to suck on her sensitive nerve. Her moans got more frequent as she felt Y/n's other hand reach up and play with her chest. Light pulling and flicking.

"This...this can't be...possible" Hermione gasped out as her mind tried to wrap around the indescribable pleaser three parts of her body were experiencing simultaneously.

Every touch, every whisper, brought her closer to a blissful climax that only Y/n could make her reach. Her body started to shake as she tried to raise her head to look at her Captain, but it was no use.

"So close" Hermione moaned as her nails dug into Y/n's scalp, but the sailor paid it no mind as her mouth nibbled on the bundle in front of her. They melted into each other, becoming one entity in the darkness as their bodies quivered in unison.

Y/n's fingers quickened again, sending more pleasure through Hermione's body. She could feel her peak getting closer with every thrust.

Hermione's mind was consumed by a whirlwind sensation as Y/n's skilled fingers continued their rhythmic dance against her body. Every touch, every stroke, sent waves of pleasure cascading through her. Her skin burned with an electrifying heat that seemed to ignite every nerve ending.

As Y/n's mouth expertly explored the most sensitive part of her, Hermione's breath hitched in her throat. The sailor's lips were like velvet against her skin, teasing and tantalizing her with every flick of the tongue. It was as if Y/n possessed an innate understanding of Hermione's desires, knowing exactly how to push her to the edge of ecstasy and back again.

In the darkness surrounding them, time seemed to stand still. Their bodies moved in perfect harmony, synchronized in a dance of passion and desire. Their moans mingled together, creating a symphony of pleasure that echoed through the room.

Hermione's grip on Y/n's hair tightened, her nails leaving faint crescent marks on the sailor's scalp. The pain mixed with pleasure, heightening the intensity of their connection. They were lost in each other, their identities merging into one as they reveled in the raw, unfiltered pleasure they shared.

Y/n's fingers quickened their pace, driving Hermione closer to the edge. Every thrust brought her closer to that blissful climax she yearned for. Her body trembled under the weight of her mounting desire, aching for release.

The world outside their bubble of pleasure ceased to exist. There was only Hermione and Y/n, two souls entwined in a passionate embrace. The rest of the world faded away, leaving them to bask in the intense pleasure that consumed them.

And then, with one final surge of sensation, Hermione's body shattered like glass, her release crashing over her in a tidal wave of pure bliss. Wave after wave of pleasure coursed through her, leaving her gasping for breath as she rode the waves of ecstasy.

Her body trembled and jolted as he bit back a scream of pleasure, a part of her didn't need the relentless teasing from Pansy the following morning.

But, that was quickly thrown out the window when Y/n kept up her attack. Hermione felt her lover's hand leave her chest and pin her stomach down.

Hermione was squirming from the overstimulation, her body instinctively trying to release herself from Y/n's mouth and fingers.

Yet, the Captain wasn't letting her escape that easily.

Gasps and moans slipped from Hermione's mouth as her nails dug into the forearm that was pinning her down around her stomach.

"Ah!" she hissed out as her thighs continued to shake. This was Y/n's ruthless side coming out, her selfishness that only happened during intense moments.

She wanted more from Hermione and the brunette could do nothing but happily oblige.

Her fingers disappeared, causing the Princess to finally raise her head, their eyes met as Y/n placed her other hand onto the girl's hip to keep her in place.

"What are you-"

As soon as Y/n's tongue slipped past her entrance, she crumbled back into a moaning mess. Her arms shook as she held up the top half of her body, her chest rose and fell rapidly with every brush within her.

It wouldn't be long until she peaked again.

"My love, please" Hermione begged as she ran her fingers through Y/n's hair, their eyes never breaking contact.

The night went on like this, climax after climax was given to the princess with barely any breaks in between.

The morning began to break when Y/n was finally satisfied with her work and took Hermione to her cot. They lay together as Y/n held her tightly in her arms, kissing the back of her neck comfortingly as Hermione tried to calm down.

As they lay tangled in each other's arms, their bodies glistening with a fine sheen of sweat, Hermione turned in her embrace and looked up at Y/n, whispering softly.

"You've become my anchor, my safe haven."

Y/n smiled, tracing patterns on Hermione's bare skin.

"And you're the compass that guides me, Hermione. With you, I've found a love that transcends any better pleasure out there."

They shared a soft smile as another kiss was shared. Then another. And another.

In that moment, there was no doubt that their love would navigate any storm, no matter how fierce. Together, they were unstoppable, destined for a lifetime of passion, adventure, and unending love.

[dreamsandcozygames]

My Favorite Time Loop Games

I've been playing a lot of games involving time loops lately, so I thought I'd recommend some of my favorites!

(The descriptions are from Steam.)

I Was A Teenage Exocolonist:

Spend your teenage years on an alien planet in this narrative RPG with card-based battles. Explore, grow up, and fall in love. The choices you make and skills you master over ten years will determine the course of your life and the survival of your colony.

The Choices You Make, Make You

Growing up in humanity’s first extrasolar space colony means navigating a new world full of wonder, danger, and beauty. Explore the wilderness, study, fall in love, discover strange creatures, and deal with the consequences of your actions. Your choices will directly affect the lives of your friends and the fate of the colony. What kind of world will you help make? Will you survive to enjoy it? Why do you remember doing this before?

Growing Up on an Alien Planet

You have your whole life ahead of you. Will you spend it studying in school, or diving into the intriguing flora and fauna of this new world? Will you introduce space-age technology, or live in harmony with nature? Will you battle massive beasts, or nurture future generations? Realized in brilliant watercolor, the world of Vertumna is yours to explore.

Your Pasts and Your Futures Matter

Everything you learn and experience will make you and your colony stronger. You will thrive and you will make mistakes. These formative moments - your memories, decisions, and friendships - become collectible cards you carry with you. Each season brings new obstacles on Vertumna. The battle cards you earn from your experiences give you new options for overcoming these challenges, whether that is navigating relationships, learning new skills, exploring the planet, or staying alive. Every decision counts, during this life and the next.

How Many Lives Will YOU Live?

The cosmos is full of incredible mysteries, and your ability to remember your past lives is one of them. There are dozens of different endings to your story. How many lives will it take to save both your colony and the planet? Are you ready to wake up again?

Features:

Use memories of past lives to explore 800+ story events.

Discover more than 250 battle cards as you grow up on an alien planet.

Play your best hand in challenge encounters to ace your math test or escape from a wild snapbladder.

Make friends, fight with your parents, go on dates, fall in love, and save the colony.

29 wildly different endings based on the choices you make each month.

Pick from 25 colony jobs, like goofing off as a depot clerk, or surveying the valley.

Grow into 15 skills, including bravery, toughness, organization, and empathy.

Get to know 10 dateable characters, including dog-boys, aliens, hot politicians and stone cold killers.

In Stars and Time:

Live with the ever-present burden of being trapped in a time loop only you can know about in this turn-based RPG. Create a better future for you and your friends. Find hope where there is none left. Pray to the stars and free yourself from time.

What would you do if you were forced to relive your failures over and over again?

In Stars and Time tells the story of Siffrin and their adventurer friends—a found family bound together by fate in order to end the tyrannical reign of an evil king. But as victory is just within the party’s grasp, a tragedy occurs, the clock resets, and they have to do it all again.

As Siffrin’s the only one who notices this loop, each new start wears away at his cheerful veneer, yet he keeps going in hopes he can end this temporal tragedy once and for all.

In Stars and Time is a time-looping RPG adventure. With each loop, Siffrin gains a new perspective on the world around them, opening up new solutions to puzzles and allowing them to make better choices in conversation. Equip memories as armor, pray to the Change God to improve your team’s capabilities each loop, and challenge deadly foes to Rock, Paper, Scissors as Siffrin seeks the truth.

Our Adventurers:

Siffrin (he/they): Stressed, depressed, and under duress. (Don’t worry about it. They’re doing fine.) The punmaster protagonist of our neverending tale.

Mirabelle (she/her): A caring and nervous housemaiden mysteriously blessed by the god she so ardently follows.

Isabeau (he/him): Defender with a heart of gold. Cares dearly for his people and his friends.

Odile (she/her): The mature and nonsensical researcher studying…something. (No, she will not tell you what it is.)

Bonnie (they/them): Wait a minute, who brought this kid along???

Features:

Save the world through the power of Rock, Paper, Scissors in strategic turn-based RPG combat encounters.

Ignore the limits of time and space to fix your past mistakes by repeating the same two days over and over again.

Equip the memories you have of your friends to make your party stronger in combat.

Watch the fate of this world unfold as you escape the twists and turns of this endless(???) loop.

Eat samossas with your friends!

Get heckled by a cheeky ethereal being of infinite starlight.

Pray to a god for good luck in your travels. You’re gonna need it.

Slay the Princess:

You're on a path in the woods, and at the end of that path is a cabin. And in the basement of that cabin is a Princess.

You're here to slay her. If you don't, it will be the end of the world.

She will do everything in her power to stop you. She'll charm, and she'll lie, and she'll promise you the world, and if you let her, she'll kill you a dozen times over. You can't let that happen. Don't forget, the fate of the world rests on your shoulders.

You're not going to listen to him, are you? We're supposed to save princesses, not slay them...

Features:

Fully voice-acted by the impeccable Jonathan Sims and Nichole Goodnight.

Hand-penciled art - every background and sprite is drawn traditionally with pencil and paper by Ignatz-winning graphic novelist Abby Howard.

A princess. She's very bad and you have to get rid of her for all our sakes.

No, the Princess isn't a “cosmic horror,” whatever that is supposed to mean. She's just an ordinary human Princess, and you can definitely slay her as long as you put your mind to it.

Don't even think about trying to romance her. It won't end well for you.

Hopefully you won't die. But if you do, you'll die a lot. Be careful and stay focused on the task at hand!

A branching narrative where what you say and what you believe determines both who you are and how the story unfolds. Though I wouldn’t recommend taking any paths outside of the one I lay before you.

A new roleplaying experience from the creators of Scarlet Hollow.

[casualaruanienjoyer]

What kind of mythical creatures would the AOT characters be? (ex. witch, vampire, mermaid etc.) 🤔

Oh anon, this is such a cool ask! Thank you!

Armin: Syren. You all thought I was going to say merman, but I think it would be more interesting if Armin's species was inherently evil, known to use their voice to lure people to their deaths. Armin, in particular, is an outcast who doesn't wish to harm humans. He uses his charm and charisma to try and build a bridge between these two nations. Perhaps somewhere in his heart he wishes he was born a merman instead.

Annie: Once a powerful witch, now a gorgon. One glance and she would turn anyone to stone. A self-inflicted condition born from self hatred after the passing of her beloved. She lives a secluded life, away from humans, not wishing to hurt anyone anymore. Until one day when a certain syren with a sharp tongue manages to convince her to rejoin society.

Mikasa: Yuki Onna, a spirit wondering through the cold in search of her one true love. Beautiful, serene, yet punishing to anyone who isn't her beloved.

Jean: Werewolf. A regular person by day, an uncontrollable force by night. Somehow previously unaware of his duality, Jean is now kept under complete surveillance by Reiner, a renown and respected scientist. When in werewolf form his strength, size and bloodthirst increase significantly.

Reiner: You thought that he would be just a regular scientist? haha, no. The real reason Reiner is fostering Jean is so that he can be restrained when his 'Jekyll and Hyde' syndrome kicks in. When in his Hyde persona, Reiner becomes a totally different person, evil, menacing, confident and alluring. Nothing like his usual self-pitying softie self. Jean's job is to make sure this guy DOES NOT escape the lab and GOD DAMN it's hard when Reiner's this enticing.

Pieck: Sphinx. Forever challenging those who she encounter in a game of riddles. Get it right, and you get to leave unharmed. Get it wrong and... well... surprisingly not die. But you now owe her a favour, ANY favour. Talk about having dirt on someone.

Levi: Satyr because how hilarious would a tiny murderous satyr Levi be. Everyone around him is all song and dance, flowers and booze while Levi cannot wait to escape his colony and go on a real adventure. One that involves lots of fighting, maybe even end up training Hercules or something.

Hange: Saint Wednesday, a Romanian mythological figure. An older lady wandering the woods, showing herself to people who are lost or in need of guidance. She's able to create objects out of thin air, usually made of pure gold. She has infinite wisdom and always shows people the right way. Though, she can sometimes be a bit too excited about this whole ordeal, scaring random hikers away.

Eren: Centaur, the kind to shoot an arrow first and then ask questions. He's short tempered and incredibly protective of his tribe's land. His recklessness eventually gets him caught by hunters, but he manages to miraculously escape. No one else did.

Connie: Kappa. He really enjoys messing with everyone who tries to cross his bridge. He won't kill anyone but BOY is it funny to drag people in the water when they least expect it.

Sasha: Dryad. One with nature, completely free of any societal structure. She loves her freedom, she loves eating fruits and berries all day long and she enjoys playing around with other nymphs.