#They were the Caleb to my Mollymauk

[immortalbutterflycos]

I JUST FOUND OUT THAT ONE OF MY BEST FRIENDS OF ALL TIME HAS ACTIVELY BEEN READING MARAUDERS FANFICTION FOR A WHILE AND I'M SO EXCITED TO START WRITING THINGS FOR THEM AND THEM ALONE.

[wolfvow]

recent-ish m9 art !! mini dump :•)

[dent-de-leon]

seeing Kingsley give Caleb another tender forehead kiss when the Nein rescue him would heal my whole heart I think--

[quill-n]

I started this rough little animation on ibis paint like a month ago with full intention of finishing it, but I ended up abandoning it because animating on ibis paint on my dinky little phone kinda sucks :/ but I found the file earlier and thought I should share anyway :)

I might go back and reanimate it on krita, but I have some other projects I'm focusing on first

(I really hope someone understands this reference lol)

[VD] A short animation of Mollymauk Tealeaf and Caleb Widogast from Critical Role. They start by staring off at something off-screen; Caleb looks mildly shocked while Molly just flicks his tail with a grin on his face. Caleb then stands upright, seemingly processing whatever they were looking at. Molly looks over at him, back off-screen, then turns back to Caleb with a mischievous grin and tackles him with a sudden kiss, knocking them both off-balance so they fall off-screen. [end VD]

[does-a-nein-hit]

I find it very interesting that one of the first words/things that Molly say and seemingly remembers after he joins the circus is 'cat', specifically while looking at a black cat.

It may actually mean nothing but my first thought while reading the comic was that it was a memory vaguely resurfacing of Cree.

I've seen people say that it's a reference to Caleb and the Mighty Nein 'taking in strays' but it happens so early on in Molly's path to regaining a sense of self, essentially a time where he was closer to being Lucien than the Mollymauk we know and love that my immediate thought was that it was a vague memory of Cree. Especially since the Lucien novel tells us that Lucien and Cree were childhood friends. It would make some level of sense then that Molly would see a black cat and make a connection, even if he can't fully explain it. I may be completely wrong but I thought it was quite cool!

[gunpowderraven]

critical role: by someone that hasn’t seen any of it

hi so we recently got into dimension 20 and our friends have been tugging us towards critical role for a very long time at this point but we still haven’t watched any of it nor do we know all that much about anything that actually happens in it. however we do intend to actually start watching soon so we decided it was the perfect opportunity to make one of those ‘all the things i know about this thing i haven’t watched’ posts, show it to our critrole friends, and then actually get into critrole and be able to look back and laugh about it later

also the images are all sourced via friend so this is all one hundred percent no wiki no google knowledge, just from tumblr and discord convos and stuff. and some cast compilation videos that were very funny

update: we are now watching cr3! liveblog tag for silly lb -> #cr3 lb

vox machina

from left to right:

- i have literally no idea who the two halflings are. i’ve never seen them before in my life. what. uh. paladin and bard? im literally just guessing. who plays these characters. what

- grog? grug? this is travis’ pc maybe. also hypothesizing hes a half-orc barbarian or something similar? ive seen like one clip of him

- percival frederick von something something de rolo i think there’s a iii in his name as well, his name is long and very german but he does not have a german accent. or a french one. at separate times i have thought this character was german and french and then i heard him talk and was like. What. anyway i know he’s taliesin’s pc and he invented guns and is also possessed sometimes by big bird demon, and he has a nifty plague doctor mask. also tragic backstory. his entire family is dead i think. no mercy percy! he has a thing with vex? also his hair did a wilbur. the gay people on tumblr love this twink. i also think i love this twink

- vax’ildan! i think i may have actually spelled that right! half-elf? vex is his twin? and he’s... liam’s pc i think. yeah that’s it. he gives me angsty boy energy tho. not as much as percy but this boy has seen some shit. also he might be a rogue or a ranger who even knows. he looks like gay jon snow

- vex’ahlia which i definitely didn’t spell right. i think the next one is marisha’s pc so this one is... uh... laura? i think she’s the ranger actually. i think she has a bear. not like a gay bear like an actual animal bear. though it could be gay too i dunno. she has a think with percy. or everyone wants her to have a thing with percy. i genuinely can’t tell. anyway get that traumatized twink girl

- keyleth... marisha’s pc. some kind of spellcaster? maybe sorcerer? wild magic? she Also has a thing with percy maybe. or vex. or both. who even knows. everyone wants that twink. one time she threw herself off a cliff and turned into a goldfish and almost died and it was hilarious

anything else i know about this:

- there are evil bitches called the briarwoods and they might be vampires

- this is the one that got a tv show and might have also been the first critrole campaign idek

- d. ragons? chromia something. dragons. i hope i haven’t been lied to about the dragons. i hope there are actually dragons in this. there’s like a chromium something with dragon symbols tho

mighty nein

from left to right:

- mollymauk! ...tealeaf? another taliesin pc. the trans people like this one. i don’t know what their pronouns are. but theyre slaying every time i see them at any time. no idea what class but maybe a spellcaster?

- ...beau? i know her exclusively through lesbian ship art so i know her name is beau something bc that’s the ship names but i don’t know if that’s short for something. monk? no clue. also no clue who plays her either. maybe marisha?

- i have seen this character but i do not know their name. or anything else about them

- oh this is the sad wizard boy caleb widogast. he’s gay for essek thelyss (or something. i didnt spell that right) who is a npc i think. yeah. sad wizard. every time i see him he’s just being a wizard and sad. the gays love him too but he’s more of a distraught otter than a sad twink. maybe he and percy should start a club tho. also i think he’s played by liam

- i KNOW this character’s name i think it starts with s but i can’t remember for the life of me. scriv? scrat? no thats the rat from ice age. possibly a menace? i think im getting them mixed up with someone else. they look cool as hell though

- jester!! laura pc i think perhaps. i want to get drunk with her and tell her about all of my problems. yeah. i dont know anything about her actually. beaujester exists tho i know that

- YASHA. CRUSH ME HOLY FUCK. sorry im normal ? her voice makes me a little crazy insane. ive seen a few clips of her. mostly gay shit with beau. uh she’s played by ashley and she could kick my ass very easily

oh my god there’s another photo

- i think there’s only one character different here and it’s caduceus clay fun fact i hated this mfer for really dumb shitty personal reasons for a while before deciding it was very stupid to blame a fictional character for interpersonal drama and now im fine with him. wait does mollymauk die or something. wait a second. no, wait, fuck—

- ALSO WHO’S THAT FUCKER IN THE BACKGROUND I JUST NOTICED THAT

anything else i know about this:

- yeah i got nothing. no idea about the lore or the plot or anything bc i pretty much exclusively see gay ship art of these pcs. love wins i support it

bells hells

from left to right, one more time:

- look my brain is just saying gertrude from dungeons & drag queens but obviously that’s incorrect. so i don’t know who this is

- or this! but she looks very pretty and i love the little... monkey... bird? pls tell me these two characters have some kind of wild opposites dynamic they look like they do

- LITTLE ROBOT GUY . fcg? fgc? i think it was the first one. uh. liam pc? ?????? i think he gets bitches

- orym...? i know one of these characters is named orym. and i think it’s this one. i also see gay fanart of him

- i don’t know who the guy underneath him is

- or the lady with the purple hair god i really don’t know shit about this campaign sorry

- ashton greymoore, taliesin pc, my friend luna loves this guy, he’s. rocks? he’s rocks. groovy.

- someone in this campaign is named like dorian or something and im guessing its this one bc idk who they are either

anything else i know about this:

- flying.......... ship?

- this is the ongoing one i think

thank you for coming to my ted talk, i can’t wait to look back at this in a few months and laugh my ass off. hope u enjoyed this mess

[burningsuitfire]

Essek and religious trauma

Saw this post from @balleater here and having been meaning to write a meta on the subject, theorizing about what we know.

Essek admits to being seriously traumatized when Caleb talks to him in the Grove.

(141) Caleb: Somewhat hypocritical coming from me, but try to be kind to yourself.  Essek: You, more than anyone, showed me that trauma doesn't define you.

The simplest conclusion is religious trauma, along with neglect and abandonment.

In the wrap-up Matt puts serious emphasis on Essek's parents and family being "very deeply steeped" in the religious culture alongside how Essek has "very much eschewed" the religious culture, that no one has ever genuinely cared about Essek beyond his influence and talent, that his family didn't understand or support his focus on dunamantic research (or his career), and draws clear lines about the negative aspects of Dynasty's theocratic authoritarianism and uncompromising cultural zealotry, at points Mercer even compares it to evangelicalism and doomsday cults.

He also gives us hints that it's a bad situation for anyone who doesn't follow the official faith, like in Eiselcross when Caleb asks questions about the mandated religion and Kryn theories on the beacons:

(124) Essek: It is an interesting idea, though I would caution to keep it close to the chest. Such conversations might be considered sacrilege in some circles of the Dynasty.

Which as word of god tells us Essek had a very bad relationship with his powerful authoritarian den family that didn't understand him or his goals, and he grew up in the Bastion (which is a temple to the Luxon), when the Dynasty laws are founded on the faith and enforced by the military:

(EGtW) The laws of the dynasty, which stem from the faith of the Luxon, are enforced by a network of trusted Aurora Watch captains and soldiers

To the point where Matt emphasized how even petty criminals in the prison were systematically "beaten and emaciated", sacrilege could have ugly consequences, even growing up.

Especially considering that all we know of his father is that he seemed to have a temper to the point of extremely self-destructive tendencies, and that he was possibly military and thus law enforcement (warriors function as both in the Dynasty).

Even in the dinner conversation when he was being outstandingly open, Essek was very careful not to tell the nein anything that could allow other Kryn to question his faith:

Marisha: So his lying about it [consecution] was just about going along with the zealotry and not- Matt: Exactly, because he didn't want people to think that there was something up.

And then there's Essek's massive trust problems, which are specifically focused on the word "trust":

(131) Caleb: We feel we can trust you more than my old teacher. (You see, when you say the word "trust". It's simultaneously like seeing a small hit to the heart... and whatever icy bit that cracked melts away for a minute. There's a moment of him hearing the word and letting it wash over him.) Essek: I'm thankful for the trust you put in me. And I hope to make this up to you.

(124) Essek: I've never really been trusted and so I did not trust. When I- when you gave me trust, it gave me a perspective that was so agonizingly striking. So easy to see that I refused to acknowledge it at first, even. (135) Essek: The more I begin to see Beauregard, yourself return with these markings- I've only just recently learned to trust. It's hard to begin to mistrust so quickly.

Where there's a theory that it might stem from the Dynasty's training for echo knights and dunamancers (when we've heard Essek tell Caleb that the training is comparable to that of scourgers), and we even see the echo knight in Zadash react very strongly to the word "trust":

(13) Mollymauk: We just need to know who we can trust and who we can't.  Thuron: You cannot trust anybody in this city. You cannot trust yourselves. Anyone who has not bound themselves. They are the enemy.

Other context and info gives us that consecution and worshipping the Luxon and following the umavi-written "system of pure faith" created from their interpretation of the beacons (as EGtW dictates the Luxon is canonically silent and unconscious) is required for people to hold Dynasty political/spiritual/military office and influence, to work for the theocratic government (comprised of the 12 noble religious den families), and that dunamancy and the Dynasty's dunamis research is only accessible to those working for the government.

And it seems like Essek hints at unattractive consequences to others discovering he's been lying about his faith (and/or the dangerous nature of his career):

(131) Essek: I just know that I've also survived this long, weaving the intricacies of deceit like I have, by knowing how best to keep myself out of the complications as best as I can.

Finally, we have Essek's relationship with punishment and pain, alongside the Dynasty's systematic religious corporal punishment:

(57) In the shadows there look to be multiple figures. Some human, some ogre-ish with more reinforced bars, drow. Emaciated, beaten. Not looking happy and healthy, but then again, what good Dungeon of Penance would?

(77) ...days of chosen sunlight in which the nightfall is dispelled and the people of Rosohna and Xhorhas bask in the sun. Even those who find pain and challenge in its presence, as it is part of the worship. (EGtW) The Kryn drow who emerged from the shadowed depths of the caverns beneath Xhorhas now endure periods of sunlight as part of their worship. Periods of days, sometimes weeks, will transpire in a state of perpetual evening, enabling the darkness-bound denizens to go about their work. Such periods briefly come to an end to usher in periods of scheduled, mass worship under the sunlight.

(99) Essek: I will take my leave for the night. Thank you for not throwing me into the water. (97) Essek: The pain is somewhat comforting because I am my own punishment. (91) Essek: I have seen those far older than you that have experienced maybe half the pain I see in your eyes. Age isn't everything. Experience is what hardens you, prepares you for the worst. (138) Beau: My essence will haunt you. Essek: And I would deserve it, like I deserve all of the things that haunt me. Jester: Aw, Essek... Essek: Don't- offer me any solace. (141) Essek: Maybe it's time I just found my way. Really began my penance. I've procrastinated long enough in dealing with my sins. I convinced myself I'd be alone for so much of my life. It's hard to say goodbye when I don't feel alone anymore, but… I understand. I understand and accept what I've done.

[waltwhitmansbeard]

ugh now i can't stop thinking about it so

what cars would the mighty nein drive?

jester: she's just what a 60s vw bug would be like as a person. bubble gum pink with giant yellow flowers. an antenna topper of a cupcake and a "the traveler is my co-pilot" bumper sticker in the font from the beginning of legally blonde.

fjord: a wood-paneled station wagon. just an absolute boat of a vehicle that all of the kids (re: the rest of the nein) can pile into. insists you can't have the aux but everyone routinely ignore him. no seatbelts, we die like mollymauk.

caleb: you know those tiny german cars that seem like they were built for children to drive? one of those, maroon but you can't tell if that's the paint or the rust, at least one missing rim, can't sit in the back seat bc it is piled all the way up to the ceiling with books and papers caleb swears he's going to read someday. the glove compartment is a hazardous zone. floor littered with coffee cups.

beau: no car, this lesbian daddy drives a crotch-rocket, bright red and obnoxiously loud. she parks it wherever she wants and throws the tickets away. no helmet, no speed limit, we die like mollymauk.

yasha: no car, prefers to walk everywhere she can. if she has to go somewhere long distance, she'll crunch herself into a cab or cling onto beau for dear life. she'd prefer to get a ride from fjord, tho.

caduceus: there is one (1) car for the entire clay family, a secondhand sedan they traded for on craigslist, but it's too small to actually fit everyone in it, and there's always arguments about who needs it most, so mostly cad bikes everywhere (also a craiglist find, the chain is rusted but it works well enough)

veth: soccer mom van. she pretends to hate it, insists she "cooler" than the vehicle suggests, but actually she finds it incredibly handy. everyone hates sliding around in fjord's station wagon so when she's on the group trip, everyone fights to get in her car. also her stereo is better. the back is littered with bumper stickers that veth just finds. none of them pertain to her particularly. if she comes across a bumper sticker, it goes on the car.

kingsley: also a motorcycle, but somehow louder and gayer than beau's.

essek: absolutely REFUSES to get in caleb's car, says "that's not how i'm going to die," this is a miata twink for sure, sleek black and fast as hell. hates bumper stickers but jester snuck on one that says "my child is an honor roll student at the solstryce academy" but "honor roll student" is crossed out with "professor" written over it and "child" was replaced with "boytoy"

(vox machina version here)

[rainbowcaleb]

FICLET FRIDAY : Witless

Prompt: wet | Rating: T | Characters: Essek and Molly (Caleb offscreen) | Words: 502 | CW: None

“I’ll just be one moment, please make yourself comfortable.” Caleb walks down the short hallway and disappears into what Essek assumes is his private room.

Essek absolutely wasn’t expecting Caleb to invite him inside his room, he wouldn’t even know how to react if he saw a bed— is it large? cozy? are there abundant pillows, or is Caleb spartan with just one? are the sheets rumpled or— the thought of just the bed sends Essek into a quickly tamped down spiral. He can't handle seeing a whole bedroom full of personal artifacts all at once. His mind will try too quickly to gather all the presented information to solve this Widogast puzzle, and this year Essek is very much trying to discover friendship the natural way, not with the help of research or second eyes.

And so Essek perches on the edge of the couch, not quite allowing himself to settle, as Caleb retrieves the notes from that morning’s lecture. Curse Verin for dragging Essek out to breakfast halfway across town. He’ll never believe another ‘emergency’ text from his brother again.

There’s rapid footsteps sounding from the hallway then a small crash as someone runs into the room and bumps into the corner, almost toppling the floor lamp.

“Caleb! I’ve got an idea for where we should take Beau for her surprise birthday next— oh hello.”

Essek does not have his wits about him. If he has any wits in hand at all he wouldn’t be staring mouth agape at the tiefling that has just entered the room. The figure is dripping wet, which explains the clumsy entrance, assumingly having run from the shower. And naked. Which could also be explained by a shower. Essek’s mind is frozen on the full expanse of nude skin before him and, witless as he is, cannot move on past the logical assumption—

“Did you just run out of the shower?”

The tiefling laughs. “I might have. I thought I heard Caleb’s voice and assumed he was home and willing to hear my great plans.” A wink is sent Essek’s way. “I don’t suppose you’d like to brainstorm a party with me? If you’ve come home with Caleb, I’m sure you’re just as smart. He does know how to pick them.”

“I haven’t come home with him.” The scandal is starting to catch up in Essek’s mind but his focus is still a bit left of target. “He is simply lending me class notes.”

“Ah, a shame.” The tiefling approaches and Essek’s gaze is very determinedly trying to stay on the face. It’s a very nice face, wet black hair now curling in front of the eyes. “If you were sticking around I might risk pissing off my roommate by stealing you away. I’m Mollymauk.” A hand is stuck out towards Essek. Years of polite upbringing has Essek taking the hand despite the nearby nudity. “Can I still tempt you to stay awhile? I don’t think I’ve seen you around before, and I’m always happy to make a new friend.”

[escape-from-reality-reads]

Armored

The start of a fic set in regards to a conversation that happened between my partner and me in regards to Tieflings using their tails for various things.

M9 x Reader

slight mollymauk x reader

slightly suggestive but that's up to interpretation

Find it on AO3

----------------

You were staring. You knew it. Molly knew it. Everyone knew it and it was starting to get weird. 

It wasn’t the first time Molly had been stared at, being part of a carnival for a while, but the Nein were a bit more cautious about where they looked so as to not garner unwanted attention. Yet here you were; deep in thought, unmoving, and staring at his tail. At first he thought you were just staring into space so he started moving the appendage back and forth to be sure, only to have your eyes follow its every move. 

Glancing towards the rest of the crew with a smirk he lifts his tail to eye height, your eyes faithfully following.

“Glad you were able to find my eyes darling.”

“Why don’t you use your tail as a whip?”

He freezes at the random sentence. “I — What?”

You finally focus on his face. “Your tail. Why don’t you use it as a whip? I’ve seen both you and Jester lash your tails fairly quickly and it's about the width of my whip.” You place your bullwhip on the table, unwrapping part of it. 

Jester was the first to recover “That would hurt tho.” 

You look over. “Not if you wrap or braid it with leather or something. You’d essentially be making a new piece of armor that protects your tail. Plus you could probably find a blacksmith and get a piece of metal that you could place over the end that would be sharper to help deal damage.” 

“Almost like a stinger on a wasp.” Yasha responds, entering the conversation. “You could grapple with your arms and wrap around with your tail.” 

“Even without wrapping I feel like it wouldn’t be too different from clotheslining someone with an arm.” Beau leans forward, now entrenched in the idea. 

You nod. “It would probably hurt more than that, considering that the amount of contact would be smaller.”

“We could even get different things to attach to the end!” Jester states, pulling out her sketchbook and scribbling down some ideas while muttering to herself.  

Molly, finally snapping out of it, leans forward onto the table. “Your brain never ceases to amaze darling. Where did this come from?” 

You stare at him in confusion, slowly raising the bullwhip from the table. “You have something attached to your ass that looks like a shorter version of my main weapon of choice. I have seen you actively move it however you want. Why are you so surprised I asked this question?” 

Beau laughs. “Molly they say the most out of pocket shit that I have ever heard. You can���t be surprised by this. Between the threats of shaving people bald, wanting to make mimics their pet, and responding to things with random noises that make no sense, I'm just happy there’s some logic in this one.” 

Fjord, Caleb, and Nott sit down with new drinks, Nott speaking up first. “We making fun of Y/N and their mannerisms?” Jester jumps in, quickly explaining the small conversation that had happened while they were away, leaving you able to lean over to Molly. 

“You know, I could just braid a fabric around your tail for fun.” 

Molly looks back to you. “Oh?” 

“Wrap it up, put some charms on the fabric. Could even do so as to match the rest of your attire. Doesn’t have to be a defensive thing.” 

Molly smirks. “Was this just a long con to be able to play with my tail darling? You know all you need to do is ask.” 

You shrug with a smile, a glint in your eye that Molly quite enjoys. “But now Jester has an option to use to get alone time with a certain green someone.” 

Molly barks a laugh “Oh you clever little thing you.” All you respond with is an eyebrow wiggle as you drink your ale. 

[critter-rarepair-reccs]

Happy Wednesday everyone! Today we have eight fics in modern settings for you all! Have a look at them below the cut and if you end up checking some of them out on ao3, please don’t forget to leave kudos and comments! 🩷

Having Trouble Breathing In by Torchiclove (17,445 words, Teen) Pairing: Keyleth/Pike Trickfoot (Pikeleth) Warnings: None

‘The paramedic would take her breath away, if the asthma hadn’t done it for her.’ Keyleth falls for Pike in a modern AU.

Reccer Says: Enjoyable and well written fic of Keyleth falling for Pike in a modern AU. Explores Keyleth as a character with anxiety and it's a great, gentle depiction of falling in love with great characterisation despite the rare pair.

Live your whole life on a might-have-been by Chrome (2,681 words, Teen) Pairing: Veth Brenatto/Caleb Widogast (Widobrave) Warnings: None

Just a very short and atmospheric peice set in a modern au where Caleb and Veth met at university, and he’s driving her part of the way home for the holidays.

Reccer Says: I can’t describe the feelings this fic gives me. It’s understated and bittersweet and so full of longing that you’ll want to die. It feels like a Hemingway story almost with the way it manages to pack so much meaning in between the words the characters actually say.

And I became hypnotized by freckles and bright eyes by SunshineAndaLittleFlour (1,007 words, Teen) Pairing: Mollymauk Tealeaf/Essek Thelyss/Caleb Widogast (Shadowidomauk) Warnings: Drunk kissing

Molly didn’t realize he probably shouldn’t be kissing someone else’s partner until after he’d already started doing it.

Reccer Says: This fic, this whole series in fact, is absolutely wonderful! Its fun, flirty and emotional as well as smutty and one of the best stories/series for the purple boys and their ginger partner. Always a delight to read and this fic starts an awesome series off wonderfully!

softly, softly by maricolous (837 words, Teen) Pairing: Fjord/Mollymauk Tealeaf (Fjolly) Warnings: None

Fjord comes home from his shitty retail job to Molly, his roommate-turned-partner. They make out about it.

Reccer Says: It’s very cute and sweet, with a side of what feels Fjolly-typical horniness. It’s a fun little fic!

if we were a movie by burningdarkfire (8,800 words, Teen) Pairing: Jester Lavorre/Beauregard Lionett (Beaujes) Warnings: None

Jester decides to try and set Caleb and Essek up and ropes Beau into it. Cue many “friend” double-dates, a classic disaster lesbian Beau crush, attempts at coping with it, delightful romcom nonsense, a fun side of Shadowgast, and a very sweet ending.

Reccer Says: It’s silly, it’s fun, it’s heartfelt. Everyone’s voices are so on-point and every moment Feels like them. Beau is a mess and I love her, I want to squish Jester in my hands, and the wizards are menaces of a side pairing. Also the conversation between Beau and Essek at the maid cafe is so good.

candy hearts (so sweet on you) by thaumasilva (5,149 words, General) Pairing: Jester Lavorre/Beauregard Lionett (Beaujes) Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Implied Stalking (not between Beaujes)

Beau keeps visiting the gift wrapping station at the mall to get her Winter’s Crest presents wrapped, and the cute tiefling working there keeps giving her candy hearts with flirty messages, or: Three times Beau wanted to ask Jester out, and the one time she didn’t have to.

Reccer Says: It's just a sweet as the name implies, aaaa it's so cute

Intervention by VioletTeaTime (1,965 words, Teen) Pairing: Fjord/Caleb Widogast (Widofjord) Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings

Fjord intimidates the guy bothering bartender!Beau’s favorite customer into taking a hint and leaving. Then he gets flirted with and Beau complains about having to watch.

Reccer Says: ace fjord my beloved <3 also the boys' background friendships with Beau are very sweet

all actions and reactions by grayintogreen (2,879 words, General) Pairing: Astrid Beck/Jester Lavorre (Jestrid) Warnings: Depression, Burn-out

One of her friends suffered a breakdown, the other found religion, and now Astrid Beck, suffering from burnout and stress and a myriad of other things a pre-law student can suffer, has found the cherry on her misery sundae. Someone keeps buying all of the cinnamon scones she loves, and now she must end them.

Reccer Says: An amazing translation of the characters into a Modern AU, and surprisingly sweet

Thank you for joining us for our second recc list! All the love to everyone who submitted a fic 🩷 All enclosed recommendations were submitted by the community via our submissions form, which you can find here. All fic information is as it was provided by the reccer, so it may not be accurate to the author’s intent or the precise contents of the fic itself. Please assume good intent from all parties 🩷

Submissions for next week’s list are already open! We’ll be featuring Whump. If you have any you’d like to highlight, you can send them in here. The week after that, the theme is Pre-Relationship, and you can also submit fics for that now!

If you want more rarepair fic, check out @cr-summer-wildflowers and their event collections on ao3! If you want some friendship after all this romance, take a look at @critter-genfic-events and their recc lists! And if you’re interested in everyone’s favorite wizards, you can’t go wrong with the lists at @aeor-is-for-reccing !

Thanks all and have a lovely day/night/timezone! 🩷

[dent-de-leon]

oh...I feel like it says something that Caleb never found faith in the gods. That he finds a way to perform a resurrection ritual with just his own magic and painstaking research. With no cleric or god--just him and his family. Just their love for Mollymauk and each other.

And it should have worked. It could have. But even with the odds weighing in their favor, even when they were so desperately close, and it seemed most of their offerings were a success...with just a roll of the dice, it was all gone. A cruel twist of fate, death claiming this fate touched soul once again. Maybe it wasn't meant to be. Maybe he was always doomed. Maybe.

But when Deuces asked his god to bring him back, to give him one last chance--said that they'd all suffered enough and deserved just this much...she listened. A world away in the Moonweaver's comforting embrace, Sehanine holds onto Molly's soul and tells him just the same. "Thrice upon a time...Hang on. What comes after thrice? Does anyone know?...Isn't that the strangest thing? There is nothing after thrice in the sequence, it just ends there. But that doesn't seem right, does it? Or fair. Well. I think we shall just have to make it up."

Caleb never found faith in the gods--but he did believe in his family. Believed in Molly. And this shattered shard of a soul was loved so much, had suffered for so long--two different gods intervened, and gave him one last chance. Just. What faith means to each of the Mighty Nein, and how it's both the love of mortals and compassion of gods that brings Molly's soul home.

[thebest-medicine]

Day 9: Lie

Tickletober 2023 - Critical Role - C2 Mighty Nein - lee!Caleb

[see my other tickletober 2023 fics]

A/N: Caleb’s not ticklish. Probably. Definitely. For sure.

[read on AO3]

Words: 1.2k

—

Winding Caleb up was quickly climbing to the top of the list of Mollymauk Tealeaf’s favorite pastimes. 

He enjoyed every eye roll, every quiet sigh, every blush, every sharp retort, every stuttered reply, though he wasn’t a fan of the times Caleb would get so embarrassed he’d just… disappear out into the night! Luckily, Nott was never far behind to reel him back later - but there were more than a few occasions where soft, kind, genuine moments lead to Caleb spinning on his heels and stomping out the door, unsure of what to do with himself or those feelings. 

Molly wondered, many of those times, what might have happened if Caleb stayed.

Later, at the inn, the Nein had just settled into their rooms when Molly found Caleb in the hall and backed him against a wall to have a talk with him more intimately than necessary. Molly charmed him with an arm stretched out over Caleb’s shoulder, boxing him in with a hand against the wall. “Look, I know you get a little embarrassed when we- like now- I just mean, don’t go running away on us tonight, I am rather fond of you sticking around this evening.” (Every evening.) His eyes flicked up and down Caleb, drinking him in. “Drinks, on me. Let's get to know each other better.”

Caleb swallowed. “Ja, okay, I- um.” 

Molly’s spine tingled with excitement, tracking the bob of Caleb’s throat.

“If I need to, I’ve heard tale that I can be rather convincing.” Molly leaned in closer, enjoying the color on Caleb’s cheeks. He reached forward with his other hand, grasping the dirty wizard’s coat between his thumb and finger, and rolled the material in his fingers softly. He made to give Caleb a little push - well, a pull, rather - in grasping him around the waist to peel him from his place frozen like a hare against the wall and lead him down into the tavern. 

When Molly’s hand made contact with Caleb’s side, however, the wizard flinched away violently.

“Oh?” 

Molly reached forward, grasping at his side for something ticklish, sensitive. Caleb startled back with such a force that he hit his head against the wall. He blinked. 

Molly reached up to soothe the back of his head. “Ticklish, are we?” He grinned, certain that he looked positively evil as he caught Caleb’s eye.

“No- no. I’m- I’m not!” Caleb stuttered, his face red and eyes wide. 

“Oh,” He chuckles, “I don’t believe you.” 

Just then, Beau came out of her room to head downstairs. “Hey, we grabbin’ some drinks or what? Let’s go!” 

Molly turned to answer her, and it was just distracting enough for Caleb to slink away, back to his own room. Molly turned, squinted disapprovingly toward the wizard’s closed door, and followed Beau downstairs.

Caleb’s heart was pounding in his chest as he sat on his bed. He focused on banishing the warm blush from his cheeks and pointedly did his best to not think about Mollymauk. Or about being backed against a wall with cunning mischief and thrilled smirks. Or about how much Molly’s hand on his side had startled him. Or about how he couldn’t actually remember the last time he’d really been tickled. He’d go down after a while, share in a round or two of drinks. He would sit far across the table from Mollymauk and… And not walk close to any walls. 

It was less than an hour later when Caleb made his way down to join the rest of their party for a celebratory drink. He tried to shuffle in unnoticed next to Nott, but Molly’s eyes tracked him from the moment he walked in the room. He made it to the table unscathed, despite feeling rather hunted, and even felt a little warmer as the group received him happily, pouring him an ale. He put a few seats between himself and Molly, and settled into the newly familiar comfort of companionship.

Mollymauk tried to catch Caleb’s eyes a few times throughout the evening. He waved at him at one point, wiggling his fingers as he briefly caught his attention. He enjoyed the light dusting of pink on Caleb, nearly hidden in the low light.

The night wound down - or for some, up - an hour or so later. Nott and Beau excitedly bought shots of hard liquor for a few of them at the table just as Caleb excused himself and made his way back upstairs. It was still early. He was the first of them to go to bed; he could probably get some reading in before Nott came to the room. He entered his room and reached back to let the door close. 

He didn’t hear it click into place, and turned to look over his shoulder.

“It was rather foolish- lying to me like that earlier.” Mollymauk scolded as he finished slinking into the room. Caleb jumped as Molly closed the door behind them. “Especially about something so easy to test.” 

Caleb spun wildly all the way around, staring at the unexpected tiefling in his room. “Mollymauk-”

“I’ll give you a chance to change your tune, fess up.” Molly offered graciously with an evil smile. “And maybe I’ll go easy on you.”

“W-What?” Caleb choked out, voice a much higher octave than normal.

“I thought I was rather kind earlier, asking you nicely to stay and talk and drink and enjoy the camaraderie with us.” Molly tsked. “And rather clear that I- that we wanted you to.” He sighed, then let out a bit of a laugh and continued in a teasing voice. “But you are a stubborn one, aren’t you Widogast?”

Caleb blinked at him, holding his breath.

“I guess you’ll need that convincing I mentioned.”

“Molly…” Caleb took a step back, and the tiefling laughed.

“I have a brilliant idea as to how, too. Like I said, I can be rather convincing.”

“I don’t know what you-” Molly wiggled his fingers. “Ah, nein, wait-”

“So, first, I’m gonna find out if you’re ticklish.” He caught Caleb’s eye, smirked. “And see if you lied to me earlier.” 

“Wait- you, you don’t need to-”

“And then, we’re going to go back downstairs, and have another drink.” Mollymauk finished. “Or I am going to tell everyone else just how ticklish you turn out to be. Sound good?”

“M-Mollymauk-” Caleb stumbled over his name just as his mind tumbled over Molly’s words. He continued backing up slowly until he hit the bed, eyes wide and trained on Molly.

It was almost a mercy when Molly finally pounced, tackling him gently to the bed. His claws poked and wiggled against the sides of his shirt. Caleb sucked in a breath.

It came out as a half-snort-half-laugh when Molly squeezed him low on his hips. “Ha- wait, wait no-”

“Looks like someone’s a liar.” Mollymauk taunted in a sing-song voice, scribbling up his sides. Caleb flailed weakly on the mattress, trying to fight off the bubbling laughter starting to leak from his throat. “A very ticklish liar.” Molly enjoyed the shades of red he was getting Caleb’s face to tonight. 

Caleb gasped, trying to cover his face, flail to freedom, and catch Molly’s hands all at the same time - unsuccessful in each endeavor.

“Let me know when you’re ready to go back downstairs, hm?” Molly reminded him before diving in to squeeze a path up his sides and along his ribcage.

[captainkingsley]

"Purple boy." Mollymauk says. He's currently curled up against Essek's side, and the vocal jab gets him a raised brow and a confused hum. They're alone, as Caleb has gone to the academy for the day and Essek doesn't intend to leave for another day or two. He'll be back to hiding and studying, so the least he can do is take in the time with both Mollymauk and Caleb to have memories to sink into when he finds himself lonely and tired.

"You are purple as well, Mollymauk." He says, and his cheeks go dark as Molly's hand takes his. Clawed fingers wrap around his, Molly's nails painted dark like his own.

"You're far more purple than me." Molly purrs, lacing their fingers together. "I'm lavender."

"My point still stands," Essek says, looking from their hands — the two shades of purple — to Molly's face. With the solid red of his eyes, Essek has to rely much more on the way his face softens to gauge his emotions. And soft he is, his brow relaxed and his lips turned upward in a slight smile.

"Think Caleb's got a thing for the color purple?" Molly asks. "How many other purple things does he have in his life?"

"He got a new coat recently. Velvet." Essek says, and Molly lets go of his hand as Essek pulls himself closer. In response, Molly lifts his arm and Essek tucks himself in against his side, resting his head on his shoulder. It's reflexive now for Molly to turn slightly to kiss his forehead, feeling the brush of his curls and the softness of his skin. There's always a slight perfume to Essek, as well — Molly's not sure what it is, exactly, but he likes it.

"He might need an intervention soon. He's going to paint the living room purple at this rate." Molly says, his lips still pressed to Essek's skin. Laughter bubbles in Essek's throat, and the slight jostle only encourages Mollymauk to put his other arm more firmly around Essek's waist.

"You would not mind that." Essek says. "As smug as you are. Seeing yourself everywhere would only amuse you, no?"

"You know me too well." Molly laughs. Now his hand slides up Essek's back until his palm rests between his shoulder blades and he nudges their foreheads together.

Breathing out a sigh, Essek's eyes close and he lets himself relax further. He'd been nervous, ages ago, when Mollymauk and Caleb had first suggested he join the both of them — his feelings for Mollymauk at that point were mainly conflicted and perhaps slight jealousy. Looking back, he can only scold himself for not seeing his own obvious attraction to him — though perhaps he should cut himself some slack, as it's not every day one gets offered to join a relationship like that.

"It's a part of you I find rather charming." Essek says, reaching up to brush his hand against Mollymauk's cheek. Molly leans into it, pressing his face against the palm of Essek's hand, his face softening further. He looks entirely smitten, his mouth curled into a grin that Essek has only ever seen him make when looking at Caleb or him. His favorite part about that grin is the way Molly can't fight it off as he leans in to kiss him.

His second favorite part about it is that he finds himself mimicking it when he pulls away, chest fluttering the same way it has since the first time he'd kissed Mollymauk.

[brenbrennn]

≡ ✧ ᴍʏ ʟɪʙᴇʀᴛʏ ୧

{ꕤ} Pairing: Mollymauk Tealeaf x (gender-neutral!!) reader {ꕤ} Summary: At a point in Molly's existence, he knew barely anything about his life before becoming a member of the Fletching Moondrop Traveling Carnival. When Gustav found him, the only words he spoke were "empty" repeatedly. As Molly became more cohesive and gained a sense of knowing, the two of you grew a friendship. A friendship of shitty but harmless snipes at one another and helping him with embracing life to the fullest. He only really saw you as a friend, a close companion if you will with how much you were always by his side. But at a particular tavern in a certain town your traveling act was planning to perform in, a few thoughts went 'out the window' that night. {ꕤ} Authors Note: This is part two to the "Fjord, Essek, Caleb, and Mollymauk realizing they're in love with reader" headcanons! If you would like to read part one to get some context, you can click here for funsies!! For some bits of dialogue, I used numbers .3 and .18 from there respective writing prompt lists. Other than that I hope you guys enjoy this final part, it's been marinating in my brain for a bit and I wanted to finally execute it for yall꒰´ ꒳ ` ꒱

{ꕤ} Content Warnings (CWS): Only somewhat proofread so beware haha. Other than that none at all! If I though should add any, please let me know in the comments. Besides that - let us begin!!

«──── « ⋅ʚ♡ɞ⋅ » ─────»

・ At first all he knew was the earth under him. Wandering around aimlessly through the forest, only taking in his surroundings from beyond his resting place. This was all odd.. everything felt weird. He was... alive? But he felt alive? But now he was actually feeling the grass beneath his feet and the sound of the wind ringing in his ears. It was all a little odd.

・ The trajectory of his life immediately changed when he stumbled upon a member of the Fletching Moondrop Traveling Carnival. She was a young girl by the name of Toya. Seemingly as well stumbled upon you, though he couldn't recall your face. You were only but one of the kind members of the performance group that gave him an actual home.

・ Only thing coming from him was that same word, empty empty empty. Nothing else at all - which was definitely a strange sight to see in the middle of the woods. But hey, strange is always a fun thing to dive head-first into. To be clear, Mollymauk was nothing from regular. That's what definitely drew you two to each other.

・ Time passed on and now Mollymauk had a semblance of family. Gustav and the other members basically gave him a home, and he gained a couple good friends from his little group of performers... you in particular. As soon as Molly got to actually talking gaining that signature peacock charm, you were by his side for the long haul.

・ Every performance stop, every night under the stars he always had you. You were never one as well for any boredom, so at every stop your crew made you always indulged him in his card readings. They may be a little bit bullshitted but hey, fun is fun even if your lying just a teensy tiny bit. ・ It never even stopped there, you two were always just ones for some ripe fun in your words. Somehow some way you two were always causing some sort of meaningless trouble. Truly it's what brought the both of you together in more ways than one. One night a pit stop at a certain town for your Traveling Carnivals performance would permanently change your relationship in some small ways. Though it was merely impacted with a fun little surprise. ・ Being it a couple days before the traveling acts show, you and Molly decided to hit the local taverns. You two weren't really the ones for setting up, though you helped in some ways to benefit the others in the prep process. What ensued was a night of laughs, playful trickster fun, and some drinks to go with it.

・ Turning a once-dead aired Tavern into a lively space was definitely an interesting evening. Surprisingly you two got the bars musicians playing and everything just spiraled into chaotic madness. Drinks were guzzled down and people were drunkenly swinging themselves around in a dancing fashion. It was a great way to enjoy the night. ・ Molly was starting to get a little bit on the more buzzed side. He was really enjoying himself, especially with your presence in the atmosphere. Clearly, this night dragged something out of you, as you were more lively than normal. It made him genuinely smile as you swayed around with your tankards in grasp, singing along with some other bar mates. ・ Even if he was normally one for loud and abrasive shows of charismatic whit, tonight he just wanted to let this all sink in. As he took a longer sip of the pure whiskey he was downing, some small but peculiar thoughts started to sprout in his mind. Everything started to feel lighter and his eyes softened as he watched you dance around like a complete idiot (affectionately by all means.) ・ He was never really knowledgeful about the feeling of love. That pure, bubbly feeling would spring into someone's chest at any instance. But this was definitely something similar. His lip curled up into a grin as he heard your voice cracking with the more scream-belting.

・ Something about you was so real, so current that it would make the tips of his fingers buzz like crazy. Was this love? , what was this... with you? His chest started to basically collapse in on himself as his mind raced in panic but one of more excitement. Spanning from thoughts of if you would start to isolate yourself away from him or if you felt those same feelings as him. ・ Those were all cut off as you approached him, your cheeks definitely having a warm sort of vibe to them. You plopped down your tankard beside him at the booth you both reserved as you extended a hand out to him, an invitation if you think about it. Before he could utter one single word you then again cut him off by basically pushing it out into the open. "Dance with me, Molly? If you need help I can..-" You looked him up and down with a wink. "Teach you if I must~"

・ His grin widened as you extended a verbal invitation for some fun, which he happily accepted. "Of course sweetheart, I don't think there will be any teaching needed for how you're going on about this." He gives you that same wink and a devious smirk back to you and you can't help but chuckle as you drag him onto the main area of the tavern with all the commotion.

・ You two just spend a bit enjoying each other's company. Swaying with one another as the ... sort of good music played with you both. But the two of you didn't really care at all, collectively just taking in this moment in its subtle beauty. ・ Arms are flung around with slurred - trying to harmonize speech, other tavern guests may or may not be getting smacked in the face by you or Molly. At that point as the night went on though there were no cares in the world. It was a genuinely eventful time even if it was with a couple strangers.

・ The band started to play a new song as yours and Molly's faces inch closer. Be it the alcohol that was tremendously consumed or the conflicting feelings about the celebration of sorts, your lips collided with his in a moment of pure adrenaline. It was nothing of eloquence but it got you both giggling like a bunch of fools. ・ As you two move your heads back from the not-so-proper smooch, Molly took a visible pause. His body was still moving with the playing of the instruments but his eyes said a different story. The realization of what just happened slowly started to kick in at that exact moment.

"Did not expect that..." He says taking a breath of air almost as if he was weakened in the slightest. Definitely was though in the knees with this overt gesture. "Where did you learn that?" He finished off his words as his signature devilish look appeared once again, which couldn't stop you from letting out a string of airy chuckles.

"Someone like myself never tells our best useable secrets, but if you care to continue this dance I might just spoiler it." You say with a click of your tongue and a raise of the brow. This night was only getting oh-so-good.

・ He chuckled and you two continued, nodding and placing a hand on your lower back as a sign of agreement. You two carried on until it was near early morning, the both of you hobbling your way back to the setting up of tents and brainstorming.

・ Would Molly ever forget this night? Oh of course he fucking wouldn't, it was awesome! His heart was beating like a hummingbird and he felt almost lighter than before once again. You were the best thing to pop into his somewhat new life and he couldn't be ever more grateful for a gift such as yourself.

[a-menagerie]

Hi so I saw you song request thing. The song I was thinking of it’s The prophecy by Taylor swift with Mollymauk and add in Kingsley for a happy ending if you want to.

(pls how dare you)(i made it happy bc ofc i did😘)

Cards on the table

Mine play out like fools in a fable, oh

It was sinking in

You fall to your knees, Molly’s body on the ground in front of you. You can’t bring yourself to even pay attention to the others, you don’t care if the Iron Shepards come for you next.

Molly’s gone. He’s gone.

You’re not sure how, but you get to your feet. You help Beau and Caleb dig a grave. You cradle Molly’s tarot cards to your chest as you leave his coat as a grave marker.

Oh, still I dream of him

You felt like you were in a waking nightmare. Molly’s body but that thing isn’t Molly. Lucien grins at you from across the fireplace and you feel Jester lay a reassuring hand on your shoulder.

Please

I've been on my knees

Change the prophecy

Lucien dead, Molly’s body motionless again. You kneel at his side, even as the resurrection fails. You hear a loud keening noise and belatedly realize it’s you, crying and screaming at the gods.

Who do I have to speak to

About if they can redo

The prophecy?

You’re not paying attention to Caduceus. You don’t register as the ground blooms around Molly’s body until Yasha is shaking you, pointing. You swallow hard, assuming Caduceus is simply encouraging the ground to take Molly’s body.

Then Molly’s eyes fly open, sputtering and coughing.

You don’t know what to do as you sit there, gaping at him. You and the Mighty Nein are all (for once) silent. Molly heaves some deep breaths and looks around.

“Well, that was unpleasant.” Molly says and it is Molly. Molly’s voice, the lilt in his speech and just everything.

You launch yourself at him, ignoring his half nudity and your own bloodied state. He grunts but his arms wrap around you quickly, burying his face in your neck. Yasha scoops you both up in her arms and you feel the rest of the Mighty Nein fall into the mass group hug.

You pull back enough to take Molly’s face in your hands, while he smiled up at you.

“Did you really think they could keep me from you?”