#so like. now that i've declared that snippet over & done with

[catboy-jupiter]

so. funny story wrt the original post's tags

found out we can edit our application however much we want until they close, since they're only checking them out after that.

but now i have no idea what to edit on the lackluster snippet fuck my life forever

i'll be like "i'm a god of writing" and then an hour passes after i post or submit something and i'll be like "i'm so dumb there's so much i could've done better if only i'd waited a bit and looked at it with fresh eyes i would've noticed how much it sucks & what i could've improved that looks so much like first draft material there's so many revisions i could make why i am i so impulsive and overconfident" and then i'll start writing something else and be like "i'm a god of writing" again

[fieldofdaisiies]

Chapter 1

Yay, I'm excited to finally share this story with you that I've been working on since December 2024. It will a few chapters, and is a bit different to what I'm normally writing because what I have written so far, doesn't include any fluff. But we will see what the future brings.

The story is available on ao3, but you can read below the cut for a small snippet!

His amber eyes are locked on the leathery spine of a random book in the towering mahogany bookshelf on the opposite side of Beron’s office. The air that fills his nose is familiar, a scent he would remember everywhere—woodsmoke and aged mahogany, laced with something darker, something more sinister. It is strong within the chilly air that creeps in through a half-open window. 

Chills run down his spine, goosebumps appearing on his skin the longer he listens to his father’s pen scraping over the paper. The High Lord isn’t paying attention to his oldest son, not yet, letting him stand in the middle of the room like a fool. Especially with the … certain kind of thing lying at his feet.

Slowly, Eris forces his eyes to move away from the bookshelf, back to his father. He won’t dare to look down, he isn’t ready to face what is there. Another life taken by his hands. 

Beron sits behind a large polished oak desk, behind him, next the bookshelf, a fireplace soldering with embers.  A heavy chandelier dangles above him, its candlelight casting long, wavering shadows upon Eris’ arms. The heir looks at them for a moment, then clears his throat. “Father,“ he tries again and eventually Beron lifts his gaze off the paper in front of him, an irritated expression on his face. Then his thick brow lifts.

Eris wipes his hands down his breeches. “I did what you told me to … the job is done.”

This truly catches the High Lord’s attention and he shoves back the piece of paper and slowly rises from his chair. He rounds the desk and flas hes Eris an approving look before dropping his gaze. 

“My heart is filled with pride.” The smile on Beron’s face is sinister and doesn’t reach his eyes. Bile rises in Eris’ throat, the content of his stomach souring. Once the High Lord’s words were like balm to Eris’ soul. He made his father proud. Once he craved Beron’s approval as desperately as a leech craves blood. 

Not any more. Now every word only makes him loathe his father more. 

Eris’ gaze falls to the lifeless male by his feet, throat slit open, dead eyes staring up at him. Blood is leaking from his mouth, and despite hating this part about himself, Eris is untouched by the scene. 

He may not like his father, but the male at his feet was a traitor to the Autumn Court and consequently also to him, to the heir of this court.

"Will we inform the family?" Eris wipes his knife on his coat, smearing the blood onto the brown fabric. "Send a letter?“

"Of course not." Beron clicks his tongue. "The wife will find out when he doesn’t return."

Eris hums lowly, his jaw set tight. This is something that does not leave him untouched. The wife’s pain, the tears she will shed when her husband — traitor or not— won’t come home and she will slowly realise what happened to him. 

He sheathes his dagger, the one made by Nesta Archeron, and steps back. 

"I’m always surprised about their idiocy, aren’t you?" Beron tilts his head to the side, observing the male. "How they truly believe we won’t catch them. How they believe that my intelligent and fierce son is not always a step ahead of them."

Manipulation through words … Eris once cherished his father's praises, falling for them completely. Now, he sees through the lie in them but keeps his realisation hidden. The mask of the perfect, cruel son will stay on his face for as long as Beron is alive. He can’t risk it. 

Eris dips his chin in agreement and as a form of thanking his father for the praise, then wipes his hands down his breeches, ready to leave.

But he makes the bill without his father.

"I've been busy as well these past weeks," Beron declares with a haughty tone in his voice, turning on his heels, after poking the lifeless male’s head with his boot once more. 

"Ah," Eris mumbles, already halfway to the door. His job is done here, and he can't wait to wash his hands clean of all the blood that has been spilled. The mere thought of the amount of it churns his stomach.

"You don't want to know why, son?" Beron calls after him, his voice dripping with irritation as Eris turns back to him. Beron returns to his desk, grinding his teeth as he braces his large, bony hands on its surface. The tension in the room is palpable once more. Like a match has already been set on fire, ready to burn down the entire house.

Eris pauses, the door just within reach, his heart pounding in his chest. He wants to leave, wants to ignore his father, but once again doesn’t find the strength to do so. He turns back, meeting his father's cold gaze, and takes a reluctant step forward, bracing himself for whatever cruel revelation Beron has in store for him.

"I’ve been successful," Beron says, his voice dripping with pride in his voice. "The little rat –or should I say bat– once more tried to breach our guards. They’re sending him again, did you know? But this time, this time, he wasn’t successful." Beron clicks his tongue, his sneer never wavering as he holds Eris’ gaze. "Walked right into my trap, and it snapped shut!" Beron harshly smacks his hands together, the sound reverberating through the room and making Eris flinch.

continue on ao3

EITS tags: @invaderdreyar @wovendreamscapes @sizzlingstarlightsky @bookishbroadwaybish @gracegracenomi @crispytimetravelchicken @velarisnightsky444

general Azris tags: @azrielsbabyg @lady-riel @moonlightazriel @aayo-whatt (no smut) @brekkershadowsinger @ladyelain @banasheefan56 @a-frog-with-a-laptop @ofduskanddreams @acourtofladydeath @secret-third-thing @born-to-riot @chunkypossum @jules-writes-stories @the-darkestminds @unanswered-stars @christeareads @mistandmemories @bookishbroadwaybish @c-starstuff-man0 @talibunny30 @nestasgoodside @baileybird71 @molcat07

[coffehbeans]

Sinking Chips Chapter 1

Okay I'm done editing, new story aaaaaahh

This is the story written after the result of this poll! Thanks sm for voting and for your patience! It took a looong while aaaaah

These two characters are very dear to me. They're one of my oldest g/t ocs alongside Juhren and Sunflower, and I've even made art for them years ago. (funny how I said back then that I'd write about them soon and it took me SIX FREAKING YEARS)

Anyway, I'm very happy to finally share a snippet of their story! Enjoy! <3

Summary: Caytlin Brooke, a sophomore marine biologist student gets stranded in the middle of the sea, with no hopes of rescue. But a chance encounter challenges all she knew about marine life, and a bond is formed in the proccess.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The whales’ singing blasted like trumpets in the cave, a sign that a new Heir was about to be announced. With King Freyr’s last breath on the day before, it was a matter of time until the Ocean declared a new protector for the North Atlantic.

Merfolk swam and gathered at the center of the plaza; a large outdoors space made of polished stone. Bioluminescent creatures illuminated their path in a spiral shape, and a large crowd formed as they cheered with clicks and whistles. In front of them laid a magnificent castle, bigger than the length of two blue whales, and with towering, pointy towers. It was made of the same dark blue stone material as the vast cave, and if it wasn’t for the glowing plankton and the blue gemstones decorating the walls in spiral patterns, the intricate carvings of the castle would merge with the walls of the cavern.

Inside the palace, Queen Haliae watched her tears float upwards, the pain of losing her King like a fresh wound in her heart. On each arm, she held a baby, non-identical twins that would never meet their father. One had pale blue skin, as light as the sand on the seabed at night, and dark turquoise hair that flowed like the ocean waves. His tail was a greyish shade of blue, mimicking the pattern of a blue whale, just like his mother’s. The baby cried as the light of the Ocean’s Oracle shone like a chandelier on the ceiling, a ball-shaped crystal filled with flowing, glowing water. It was too bright for the little mer’s small, fragile eyes. The other twin on Haliae’s arm had shorter, unrulier hair as light as the sand with a distinct turquoise undertone, and his skin was a darker shade of blue. His tail was a deep blue like his father’s, mimicking a humpback whale. Unlike his brother, this baby was transfixed by the glowing orb over his head, giggling every time light pulsated from it.

The mother swam up to that crystal with unwavering determination in her eyes, eliciting a prayer to the Ocean, which flowed as easy as a whale’s call. She finished it with a personal supplication, one she whispered so only Mother Ocean would hear.

“May whoever you choose be a beacon of guidance in this kingdom, much like their father were... And may the other find his footing as the New Heir’s shadow.”

As if answering her, the Ocean’s Oracle shone a light as bright as the sun, blinding the mother, her children, and all merfolk gathered inside the palace. The crowd waiting outside whistled and twirled, knowing that the time for a new Heir was soon to come.

When the light dimmed and the Queen opened her eyes, one of her kids was glowing.

It was not the giggling child, no, for Mother Ocean chose the crying, screaming child, who now sobbed louder while glowing a vivid blue. The teardrop-shaped necklace he wore filled with cerulean, fluorescent water, a sign that he was now the New Chosen Heir.

The mother smiled, melancholy shining in her features. So, this was the one that would carry her husband’s legacy. She kissed the unchosen child on the forehead, giving him to one of the servants so she could present the chosen child to the people.

The glow dimmed from her son as Queen Haliae swam towards the outskirts of the castle, and the crowd praised their Majesty with louder cheering. She raised her kid up high, swimming further above her kingdom, and the whistling of merfolk and sea creatures alike shook the foundations of their cave. She cradled her small son in her arms, who was looking at her with pure, round eyes, unaware of the reason for the commotion around him. It was customary for the royal merfolk of the North Atlantic to name their children after the Heir was chosen, and so she thought of a name much fitting for him:

“Your name will be Aegir Sonhavet.” She whispered to his tiny ears.

…

Warm temperature of 77 degrees Fahrenheit. A soft breeze by the sea, no sign of storm in sight. No prediction of wild waves today either.

Today, Caytlin would go cruising.

She shot up from her seat at yet another cell development class, huffing as she shoved things inside her bag before waving bye to her friends and hurrying outside. Pushing her strands of light brown, shoulder-length wavy hair aside and fixing the collar of her white and blue stripped shirt, Caytlin searched for her house’s keys in her jean shorts pockets. Her hand curled around a cute dolphin keychan and she sighed in relief. Putting her keys away safely in her pocket, Caytlin walked out of the university with wide steps.

She walked, no, dashed away from the building, saying hello here and there to the people she knew in her hurried way, until arriving at the bus stop. She recovered her breath as she waited anxiously, pacing left and right, and celebrated when her bus finally arrived.

A few minutes later and Caytlin was close to her home by the harbor. She walked on the sidewalk, glancing to the calming sea to her right, the view of its gentle waves and its deep blue color filling her excitable heart with absolute joy. There it was, in the distance, anchored by the harbor: her, oops- their, well-kept cabin cruiser.

‘Dad is definitely not home today. Soo, I will definitely come back before he arrives!’ She thought, a mischievous smile on her face.

Caytlin checked the inside of her house, which was on the way to the port, to confirm her suspicions. Yep, he wasn’t home. The winds were sure favorable today.

Passing by her house to pick some lost supplies, which she piled on her arms with hurry, Caytlin strode towards the awaiting ship she and her father had for over ten years already. He had taught her everything about the ocean, from how to maneuver the cruiser to curious facts about sea animals, all of which cultivated her deep passion for marine life to begin with.

Loading the ship with supplies, Caytlin boarded it and steered out of the port, giggling with excitement.

And off she went, towards the open sea.

…

It’s jammed.

The engine is jammed.

Caytlin pushed the lever again. Nothing. She tried kicking the engine. No results. She tried opening it with a screwdriver and seeing the inside, and her body ran cold.

The wires were burnt. Completely burnt.

And she had forgotten to bring the reserve components.

“W-well, it was an old boat, after all…”

Caytlin’s heart hammered full swing. She’s in the middle of nowhere, for she cruised too far away from shore, way ahead of the safety margin she and her father had stablished. There’s no land in sight, no signal on her phone and no way of returning back safely.

“I-it’s fine! I-I’ll find a way. Dad will notice I went to the sea. Yeah.”— She said in-between panting breaths.

She’d be rescued safely, that’s it. She’ll just have to wait out in her pretty little ship until help arrives.

That is, if the ship doesn’t topple over or break down when that huge, dark cloud in the sky reaches her.

Caytlin gasped and dashed outside of the cabin to look at the storm that was nearing her location. She gripped the railing tightly.

“No way! The weather forecast said there was no rain today!”

‘But the weather isn’t always predictable’, her father had said once.

Caytlin groaned and clutched at her hair, sucking in a breath. She had to find a way out. She had to.

‘The radio! Maybe the radio would work!’ She ran back inside the cabin and pressed a number she memorized all too well – her father’s.

“No signal. Why there’s no signal?!” – Caytlin flailed her free hand while bouncing on her feet and begging under her breath, as the phone ringed in her ear. – “Please work please work please work plea – “

A heavy slamming of something against the bottom of the ship sent Caytlin flying to the ground with a scream.

“AAH! What was that?! —”

The perturbation made the ship swing side to side, as the ocean waves rolled under it. Caytlin got up, clutching her head, and left the cabin, looking for the source of the sound.

What she saw underneath sent shivers down her spine.

There was a huge shadow under the water. Bigger than two to three times her cabin cruiser, and it was moving.

Despite being knowledgeable of marine life, Caytlin’s heart still hammered against her chest.

“Must be a curious whale. Yeah! Just a whale… But…”

Realization set deep within her, heartbeat rocking inside her ribcage.

“But whale season hasn’t arrived yet –”

The shadow hit the ship in the bottom and Caytlin fell with a shriek. Supporting herself on her hands and knees, she turned around, out of breath as she feared the ship toppling over and making her fall into the cold depths below.

Just as she was reaching for the railing, a shadow covered her frame.

Caytlin hugged the metal bar and closed her eyes shut, preparing herself for the splash of a humpback whale but, nothing came.

Instead, all she heard was breathing, like the creature was right by the crook of her neck.

With wheezing breaths, Caytlin clutched the railing with clammy hands. A huge droplet of water fell to her right, hot, humid air blew on her back, making the hairs on her skin turn up to their end.

She turned around.

The visage confused her. Something light blue covered her field of vision everywhere, but it moved, no, it contracted like muscle tissue. Adorning it were dots of bright blue and teal-colored spots, trailing up the fleshy surface and towards a –

A face. There was a billboard-sized face right over her. White, round eyes covered her field of vision, the cerulean blue irises staring down at her. Its unnaturally grey pupils alone must be bigger than a basketball, massive eyelids covered them. A blink.

Caytlin screamed from the top of her lungs and tried to get up, only to slip and fall hard against the floor. A clicking sound reverberated above her and the ship swung under the creature’s blunt force. She scrambled back with wide eyes until she hit something soft and wet and – Oh gosh, it was the creature’s hand, a gigantic hand brushed against her back, claws longer than her head hovering above her.

Caytlin screamed until her throat went hoarse and the creature backed away, rocking her ship with it. She skidded over the slippery surface until she managed to stabilize long enough to sit still and stare at whatever was staring back at her, a few feet away.

The creature was more distant than before, but very much there and not going anywhere. Only when her screams subsided did Caytlin manage to try and process what the hell was going on with panting breaths.

The ocean got eerily silent, the only sound being the ripples on the sea, the huge creature’s breathing, and Caytlin gasping for air. She attempted to calm her racing heartbeat with deep breaths, one after the other, to process whatever was it that was floating right in front of her, glancing at her small frame with widened eyes.

Directly in front of her field of vision, there was a human-looking chest wider than her boat’s length. Three slits laid on top of its torso on each side, which looked like gills, as they opened and closed under the water. She looked up, and up, at something that resembled very much a male chest, blue in color, with those same splotches of bright blue adorning its – his, vast shoulders and —

That face again. Human-looking, too human and not human at the same time, with almond eyes, no visible crease on its eyelids, blue irises and translucent pupils. There were two thin lines over the eyes in the shape of eyebrows. A flat nose that resembled nothing that could be found in a human, as its nostrils opened and closed like the blowhole of a whale. The spots on his face were like freckles, a darker shade of blue than the blotches on his shoulder.

Despite the foreign appearance, he looked… Beautiful, Caytlin exhaled, lost in wonder. Wavy hair flowed from his head like waterfalls, a dark teal color with light blue tips, which curled at its ends just like waves that crashed on the beach. On one of his pointy ears, which tapered on their ends like a fin, adorned three purple jewels, made of a crystal she couldn't recognize. Around his neck there was a glowing, teardrop-shaped necklace with purple beads, while one arm had a silver-colored arm ring. His arms had dark blue spots and stripes scattered in a random fashion, and Caytlin wondered if they were natural markings or painted on.

He looked like a mermaid out of a fairytale. Except the 80-something-feet in height.

“I-I… Am I dreaming?” – Caytlin whispered.

The creature chirped in return in what sounded like a very loud whale call over the water, way louder than any whale she has heard. Caytlin yelped and covered her ears.

The creature sank itself lower in the water, sending ripples through the ocean, but not taking its huge eyes off her.

Such a creature shouldn’t exist. She must be hallucinating. Yup. That must be it. And yet, why did it look so real? Caytlin looked up at him with widened eyes.

“Y-you’re not gonna eat me, are you?”

She only received a confused noise in return. The creature didn’t open its mouth, yet the sound coming from its throat was just as loud as if it was from a speaker. It must be its way of communication, similar to that of whales and dolphins. That was…

Fascinating.

With buckling knees, Caytlin got up, maintaining eye contact with the creature while clutching the nearby railing with all her might. The merman stayed on its place, observing Caytlin with what she guessed was mighty curiosity. The expressions looked so human… It was like she could see what it – he – was thinking. He widened his eyes as he watched Caytlin get up, sucking in a breath and closing the gills on the side of his neck.

“H-huh, looks like you aren’t going to eat me. Phew.” She sighed and gave the creature a crooked smile.

The creature, however, looked down at her with a confused, but curious expression.

And then it got closer.

“Oh gosh, no no no –! “

He raised himself more above water, waves crashing as he loomed over her with a long shadow and – yep, definitely bigger than 80 feet – Caytlin made a note inside her head. She had swum next to blue whales before and what was before her was certainly bigger than a blue whale, so pretty much over 100 feet tall. When the creature noticed she was shaking and backing away, it raised its eyebrows and sank a little to the ocean, with only its face at view.

It came closer to her, anyway.

Caytlin gasped and sealed her eyes shut when the merperson got so close she could feel his breath – and oh, he was carnivorous alright – her heart racing as she gritted her teeth, pressing herself so hard against the wall outside the cabin she thought she would merge with it. It seemed to be observing her, looking her up and down with a curious expression, moving closer and leaning his large hand over the boat, which was on the verge of capsizing as the metal groaned under the heavy weight.

His eyes observed her just like she has seen whales do before. Was this creature intelligent? Was it a fish? A mammal? Caytlin had so many questions…

She slowly got up again, not taking her eyes off the creature, and sighed shakily, calming her accelerated heart.

If she wasn’t hallucinating right now, this was the greatest discovery human kind had ever seen. And she was its first witness!

Caytlin took one step closer towards the merperson – ‘Yeah, I’m really going crazy’ –she thought, raising her hand with a nervous expression. She knew she had to be calm but, it was so difficult! His face rose far above her and she had to crane her neck up to meet his eyes. Taking a deep breath and closing her own eyes to disperse her fear, Caytlin reached out with a trembling hand, little by little until –

A gasp echoed from above her and she opened her eyes.

She had touched the creature’s nose and he looked at her tiny hand with widened eyes. Caytlin raised her eyebrows. For that moment, time had stopped, her green eyes lost in his. It felt so…So out of this world. She smiled, noticing how both were so curious about each other.

And soon the creature acted the same way.

Caytlin yelped when a wet appendage – the mer’s finger, she realized – caressed her arm up and down as it peered at her with those glossy, cerulean eyes. A sigh ruffled Caytlin’s hair, and she gulped down her nervousness as the creature touched her arm, claws grazing her, heartbeat rocking loudly in her chest.

Satisfied, the creature backed away from her and started lowering his head back to the ocean, with a frown on his gigantic face. ‘Was he sad…?’

When the creature sunk his face completely, Caytlin realized with sinking dread that it was leaving her alone.

“Wait!” she shouted, reaching out towards the ocean.

The merperson raised his torso up again, surprising Caytlin as she fell on her back towards the floor with a yelp. ‘Ow, I really have to stop falling down.’ – she thought. He sunk his body again, whistling and clicking with an apologetic expression, and left only his eyes visible. Caytlin got up and sighed in relief when the merman returned. An impulsive idea lightened up in her head: She could ask for the merman’s help!

But… How would she do this?

“I’m, um, you see, I need help!” – she said, waving her hands around. The merman only tilted his head in confusion.

“Oh, u-um, how am I going to do this…” – Caytlin looked down pensively until an idea popped up, and pointed to the vast horizon behind her with her hand.

“Um, shore, land! I need to get back there! See?”

She made a motion of sea waves with one arm, while cupping her other hand over it, mimicking the vague shape of a boat.

“Boat, um, crashed!”

She ran to her cabin, which made the merman raise his head above water, and tried to turn the engine back on, which failed with loud noises.

“S-see? It’s not working! And, and –” Caytlin ran back to the railing, where the creature looked down at her with a puzzled expression.

“So I need help! Got it?” she gave him a tentative smile. The merman’s frown got deeper.

Yeah, he didn’t seem to have understood a thing. Caytlin groaned and sat on the floor, holding her face with both hands.

“This won’t work…”

And just as she lowered her head, loud splashes sounded all around her. The merman was probably going back to the ocean. It was better this way. Help would arrive soon, anyway.

But when Caytlin kept hearing the sounds, she opened her eyes and looked around. What resembled a blue whale’s tail appeared in her field of vision, splashing gently around her. The creature was swimming around her boat, looking it over. As if analyzing it. Her eyes widened in wonder. Yeah, there was no way he didn’t have similar human levels of intelligence. His behavioral patterns were unlike any other animal she has seen. The merman swam back to be in front of Caytlin, with his eyes lit up, as if he had understood something. He covered her once again with his shadow, looked down at her and nodded.

That was the only warning Caytlin got.

The creature’s heavy hand collided against the bottom of her boat with a loud thump, sending her sliding backwards with a yell until she hit the wall of her cabin again. The boat moved towards the direction Caytlin had pointed before in her previous attempts to communicate. She got up on shaky knees, supporting herself until she entered the cabin, and looked straight ahead, widening her eyes in realization.

The creature was moving the boat back to shore. It was helping her. It had understood what she meant!

Caytlin giggled, leaning over the front window with a gleeful expression on her face. The boat glided quickly on the ocean with the help of the merman’s hand, and from the distance, loud splashes resounded from the powerful flaps of the creature’s tail. Caytlin walked out of the cabin and looked up to the merman, who blinked down at her.

“It’s working!” she raised her hands in triumph.

And then, just when Caytlin thought she could not be more surprised, the creature glanced back at her, and the corners of his lips tilted up.

He smiled.

Her jaw went slack. She could not believe this. This mermaid-like creature, despite his gigantic and intimidating size, not only was intelligent enough that they managed to communicate somehow, but was also helping her get to shore. Not to mention his many human-like mannerisms. She was so… So mesmerized. She gazed at his focused face.

‘I need to know more about him.’

But the rocking of the boat followed by a complete stop made her leave her blissful moment. The merman had stopped swimming, so Caytlin turned around, realizing why. She could see the shore in the distance, close enough so she could be seen and rescued, but far enough so that the creature could slip back into the ocean unnoticed. She looked back up at him, who answered with a sympathetic frown, as if to say “That’s as far as I’ll go.” Caytlin looked down.

“Right, guess this is it, huh?”

She approached his face once again, capturing every single detail in it, hoping to write it all down on her journal later that day. Caytlin reached out a hand for him, who complied, leaning his face against it, as she felt the wet and smooth texture of his skin.

“Thank you… I just hope I can see you again.”

Caytlin looked up, and backed away, leaving space for the creature to dive deep into the ocean again. It lingered by her company for a few moments, as if to also capture her every detail, and with a nod, he dived back into the ocean.

…

The rescue team didn’t take long to find her, even in the pouring rain of the heavy storm. When she stepped safely onto the beach, soaked from head to toe, her dad Charles hugged her tightly, scolding her right after. He was mad, but that was understandable. She wasn’t a teenager anymore, but she sure acted recklessly like one. Caytlin took her dad’s sermon with a saddened but understanding expression, nodding at everything he said, even if her mind drifted somewhere else, back to that encounter by the sea.

Later at night she wrote everything down, from the moment the engine got jammed to the time the merman swam away, as well as observations regarding the creature’s fascinating behavior and appearance, all in precise detail.

Caytlin plopped into her bed, looking at the ceiling with longing and determination.

‘I’ll definitely find you again.’

…

Looking up at the vast stone ceiling of his room. Aegir’s mind drifted back to that excitable, fearful yet curious human face. He remembered the way her tiny hand touched the tip of his nose, how her dry skin brushed against his fingertip.

Humans were, fascinating. She was fascinating.

‘I want to see her again.’

Aegir raised his body up, and secretly swam out of his room towards the dark of the night ocean. He left the cavern, where his kingdom resided in, with a silent whoosh of his tail, swimming up to the surface. Taking in the moonlight, Aegir closed his eyes, opening his nostrils to breathe in the fresh air, and leaning on his back over the ocean’s surface, letting the relaxing currents drift him away.

Dread sank heavy in his mind.

He had just made a grave, grave mistake.

And he did not want to go back on it.

Aegir looked at the moonlight, lost in the recollection of that human’s face, yearning to find her again.

‘Mother Ocean, what am I going to do now?’

[thegingerwrites]

the cure for everything is salt water? 🌊

Mermaid Obi-Wan, my love 🧜‍♂️🌊🧡💕 I've talked a little bit about this fic before but I haven't actually shared anything from it yet. It's one of the fics I'm scheduled to come back to after that poll a few weeks back but I have a bit from it that I've been meaning to share for a while.

This fic is very much the result of watching Aquamarine (the 2006 classic) through obikin goggles and then going on a run where I obsessed over how it would work. It is, admittedly, a little wild.

Enter Anakin Skywalker, widowed marine biologist and single father of two, and Obi-Wan Kenobi, member of the Supreme Council of Merfolk and new owner of a pair of nice legs. Obi-Wan washes ashore in a storm and decides to stay. He believes that humans and merfolk working together is the only way to protect the ocean from pollution and climate change while the rest of the Council wants them to remain separate as they have been for years. He sees Anakin and realizes he is the perfect liaison to the human world. He is smart, kind, handsome, and already does this kind of work for the humans. Not to mention handsome, did he say that already? If he can get Anakin to fall in love with him, the Council would have to declare his self-appointed mission a success.

Meanwhile, Luke and Leia are a week away from the end of their last summer at the Resolute Bay Beach Club. Anakin has accepted a job in Australia, uprooting their lives and moving them halfway around the world. They have one week to say goodbye to the place they've grown up in (they're about 13), to the people they know and love like their babysitter, Ahsoka, and to the memories they had of their mother here before she passed. When the twins and their babysitter, Ahsoka, find a mermaid in their swimming pool, they might have also discovered a way to keep things as they were and give Anakin something to smile about again. Because as everyone knows, if you help a mermaid, you get a free wish.

Below the cut is the snippet I've been meaning to share! It's from Ahsoka's POV, the fic would probably bounce around from a few different perspectives🧜‍♂️🧡

“Hello there!” says the merman. He is every bit as buoyant and… well, bubbly as the kids told her he would be. Maybe even more so. He is as bright as the sunshine and happy to see them, even trapped as he is inside a poolside bar turned storage shed.

Ahsoka spares a glance at the twins before keeping a close eye on the strange man in the shed. “Luke, Leia… what is this? Who is this man?”

“My name is Obi-Wan Kenobi, a representative from the Supreme Council of Merfolk. Dear Luke and Leia found me last night after I washed ashore in the storm.”

He offers the twins a little wave and a warm smile, peering over the edge of the bar and a pile of pool inflatables.

Ahsoka tries her best to school her expression, caught somewhere between disbelief and the overwhelming impulse to get this insane man away from the children.

“And I’m so glad that they did,” the merman—Obi-Wan—continues. “I had no idea what I was going to do, trapped in a swimming pool like that. This morning, when those men came to drain it with that awful machine, I knew I had to escape but there was nowhere for me to go. I managed to climb out when they stepped away, thinking I could at least find a better place to hide, and suddenly I had these!” He gestures down in awe to the two legs he is currently standing on.

Obi-Wan beams up at the three of them, each one a varying degree of confused.

“My very own pair of legs! I knew that it was possible but I’ve never done it before. No one in living memory has. I’ve begged the Council to let me go ashore for years and now I finally have!”

“Are you naked under there?” Ahsoka asks, tentatively tilting her head to see above the bar top.

Obi-Wan looks down too. “Well, yes, I suppose I am. As I said, it was a narrow escape and I was short on options.”

Ahsoka closes her eyes, unable to believe she’s really about to say what is about to come out of her mouth. But she needs to get the kids away from this man if he really is delusional and getting him some clothes is a step in the right direction whether or not he really is some kind of mermaid. “Leia, go to the laundry and grab some of your dad’s clothes. A swimsuit or something.”

If possible, Obi-Wan brightens. “That would be most kind of you, thank you.”

Leia runs off, leaving just Ahsoka, Luke and Obi-Wan. Perhaps with fewer children around, she’ll be able to get a straight answer out of him.

“Look, Obi-Wan. It’s not that I don’t believe that you’re a mermaid—” She doesn’t but that’s beside the point. “—But I’m going to need some proof that you are who you say you are. It’s my job to look after Luke and Leia, I can’t just let them run around with strangers.”

Perhaps if she can talk him down, rationalize with him a bit, they can get Obi-Wan somewhere he can receive help.

Obi-Wan nods solemnly. “Of course, I understand perfectly. I seem to have misplaced my necklace somewhere in the storm last night—it identifies me as a member of the Council. But your concerns are simpler than that, aren’t they? The children saw my tail last night and you haven’t. I haven’t been on land before but supposedly, all I need to do is touch water again for my tail to appear. That or wait for the sun to go down. The unfettered moonlight should bring it back as well.”

He makes it sound so reasonable, is the thing. It shouldn’t be. Ahsoka studies marine biology, she knows there is no such thing as mermaids. And yet…

“Luke, go get him a glass of water.”

Luke runs off obediently while Ahsoka keeps her eyes on the man in the shed. There’s something…strange about him that’s for sure.

Ahsoka crosses her arms in front of her chest and sizes up Obi-Wan. She has her phone in her back pocket ready to go, prepared to call someone, anyone that might help. 9-1-1? Anakin?

“Alright, what do you want?” Ahsoka asks while the kids are occupied. “Say you are a mermaid and not some crazy naked person fresh off of the beach. What are you doing here?”

Obi-Wan’s expression goes solemn and sincere. “My people are struggling against environmental changes they have no control over. For so long, the Mermish Council has been content to keep our people separate for our own protection but I believe that if we are to have any hope of surviving, we have to work together. Being on land now is my chance to make a difference, to prove that we don’t have to hide from humans, that there are those who would help us in our fight to survive.”

He's just so… earnest. He doesn’t sound like someone confused into believing he is a mermaid. He is eloquent and genial, well-spoken and articulate. Listening to him, Ahsoka almost finds herself nodding along, understanding his plight and his duty to protect his people.

Until she remembers that this same man is still standing naked in a shed.

“I don’t believe in mermaids,” Ahsoka says. “And I don’t know what you said to the kids last night to get them to believe you either. But as soon as Leia gets back here with some clothes, you need to leave.”

Obi-Wan looks down at himself. “Ah—yes, I can see how this might be a bit awkward. I understand humans generally keep themselves covered up in public. Merfolk don’t necessarily have that problem, most of the time.” He peers around to look at his back. “Though I have to admit, this is quite cute.”

“Mermaid or not, you’ve got to keep your dick covered.”

“Understood.”

Ahsoka is going to consider that a win.

Footsteps echo across the wooden deck as Luke races over with a glass of water, going so fast he nearly spills it. “I’ve got the water!”

“Excellent. Thank you, Luke.” Obi-Wan reaches out to take the glass from him. Ahsoka has an instinctive, protective urge to tell him to keep Luke’s name out of his mouth. They aren’t friends, they don’t know each other. He is still a stranger, and it is Ahsoka’s job to keep these kids safe.

Obi-Wan perches on a stack of boxes, careful to keep himself covered now that Ahsoka has told him off. He gives Ahsoka a look and nods before upending the glass over his bare thigh.

The transformation happens faster than Ahsoka’s eyes can track. There is no slow morphing of legs to tail, no growth of scales and fins. In the space of a blink, Obi-Wan goes from having two perfectly normal legs to having a long, iridescent blue tail. The curving fin at the end seems to wink at her, as the rest of the tail moves with vast power and strength, as though unused to keeping still. The scales along his thighs gleam in the light like sunlight on open water. They stop just above his waist, smoothly transitioning into his torso.

He flicks his fins, stretching his tail out to its full length before pulling it in, tucking it beneath him to balance better on the box.

“Satisfied?” he asks. There is more than likely some kind of smug grin gracing his features but Ahsoka can’t look away from his tail long enough to see it.

More feet pounding against the wooden deck. “I have some clothes!”

“Thank you very much, Leia,” Obi-Wan says. “If you could just leave them on the sill there, I’m sure my legs will return in a minute.”

Leia joins Luke at the edge of the bar, both of them peering up and over to get a look at Obi-Wan’s tail. “It’s even prettier in the daytime,” she murmurs.

“It’s beautiful,” Luke agrees.

“You’re both very kind.”

Ahsoka tries and fails to gather herself together. He… is a mermaid. The reality of that statement never really occurred to her but it is impossible to deny the fins and scales flashing before her. Every plan she wracked her brains for as to what she could possibly do with a strange man hiding in the storage shed has been dashed to the rocks.

“Right.” Ahsoka takes a deep breath. “Get some clothes on, we’ll talk more then.”

She grabs the two doors that cover the shed’s window and slams them shut. If she takes a moment to close her eyes, rest her head against the shutters and process, that’s between her and the shed.

“What are you three doing out here?”

Ahsoka’s eyes snap open and she turns to face Anakin. He’s sweating and breathless, clearly just back from a run along the shore. Instantly, she is filled with a desire to keep him out of this until she has the situation under control. How does she explain a strange man in the shed? Or the fact that his children know more about him than she does at the moment?

Luke and Leia’s face brighten in tandem, eager to explain everything in overlapping voices. That’s no good either. “We wanted to check out the pool after the storm, see what washed up.”

It’s a weak excuse but it works in a pinch. She catches Luke and Leia’s eyes and gives them both a look. They seem to understand better than she does the necessity of keeping Obi-Wan a secret, at least until they learn more about him. After all, he said himself that mermaids have worked hard to keep their existence a secret from humans. They shouldn’t go around exposing him without his permission.

“Hopefully not much,” Anakin says. “If all goes well, it should be filled, cleaned, and opened again by the end of the week.”

Leia opens her mouth to speak but Ahsoka still isn’t ready to risk whatever might come out of her mouth just yet. "Yeah, there wasn't much to see by the pool so the three of us were going to head down to the beach.”

Anakin nods. “I was just down there. The storm opened up a breach about a mile down near the marsh if you want to see something interesting. I have to get on the phone with Bail about securing the area for conservation.”

There’s a loud thump from the shed behind them. Ahsoka spares a glance behind her and catches a glimpse of Obi-Wan peering between the slim gap in the shed’s storm shutters. She quickly turns away and schools her expression, steadfastly ignores whatever is going on in there.

The beach, the entire bay really, is Anakin’s baby, in addition to his two human babies, that is. His training in marine biology led to an interest in ecology and a desire to help preserve the organisms and habitats he studied. Ahsoka connected with him when he taught as a TA in one of her marine biology classes. They’ve been more or less side by side for the last four years, into her own graduate work.

Never one to sit idle behind a desk, he took to the beach to help rehabilitate Resolute Bay. Bail Organa, a politician and friend of Anakin’s wife helped smooth things like environmental regulation over from the standpoint of state government. Ahsoka knew it was hard for him to talk to Padmé’s former colleagues and friends. He would need her to help out with the twins today even more than she usually did.

“We’ll check it out, right guys?”

Luke and Leia agree and Anakin offers Ahsoka a grateful smile.

She thinks they might have managed it. Anakin has things to do and people he doesn’t want to talk to surely, he is about to head off to leave them to it. Another thump, this one from right behind the window, rattling the wooden doors that cover it. This time Anakin tilts his head a little and Ahsoka is proud of their uniformly innocent expressions.

Anakin frowns for a moment at the three of them but a call from the main house ultimately pulls his attention away. “You know where to find me if you need me. I’ll meet you guys for lunch.”

The three of them watch him go before turning their attention back to the shed. Ahsoka hauls the window open to ask Obi-Wan what the hell he thought he was doing making all of that noise only to find no one standing amidst the pool supplies and maintenance equipment.

The door to the shed at the far end opens and out steps Obi-Wan, fully dressed in tiny board shorts and a buttoned-down shirt. He pays them absolutely no mind.

“Who was that?” he asks, sounding slightly dazed. His eyes are fixed on Anakin, climbing up the steps to the main house to talk to Motti.

“That’s our dad,” Luke supplies.

“Your father? You mean you could introduce me to him?”

Leia frowns, clearly put out by the fact that Obi-Wan seems more interested in their boring old dad than hanging out with them. “If you want, I guess.”

“What do you want with Anakin?” Ahsoka asks.

“He’s the one who dove in to rescue Luke in the pool yesterday, isn’t he? And he cares about the environment, seems well-connected in his field, not to mention gorgeous. He’s perfect.”

“Perfect?” The twins echo each other.

Only when Anakin disappears, off to his office to get to work saving horseshoe crabs and piping plovers does Obi-Wan return his attention back to them. The smile he graces them with his incandescent.

“He’s going to help me save my people,” Obi-Wan says, like it is a fact. “I can get to know him, prove to the Council that not all humans are monsters, and start saving the ocean.”

Like it’s that easy.

“You said his name is Anakin?” Obi-Wan asks, testing the name in his mouth.

Ahsoka nods. “Anakin Skywalker.”

“Anakin Skywalker,” Obi-Wan murmurs. “Absolutely perfect.”

[johaerys-writes]

WIP Wednesday

I haven't done one of those in a while! This is from the next chapter of you're a walking disaster and yet-- which is finished and should be up tomorrow:

Patroclus is sitting on his bed, History textbook in his lap and his back against the wall, Laika curled up beside him, when his door opens and Achilles walks in. He looks just as tired and disgruntled as Patroclus feels; he climbs up on the bed and nudges Patroclus and Laika aside to flop face down between them with a groan. 

“I hate this,” he mumbles, voice muffled through the pillows. Laika gives his ear a lick. 

Patroclus turns the music down a little, sets his book aside. “Did they always argue like this?” he asks quietly. “Before…”

Achilles’ back rises when he takes a deep breath. “I guess. Kind of. For a time. It was… different, though. There were times when it was so quiet. Dead quiet in the house. Before she left… they wouldn’t even speak to each other.”

“Is it better when they argue, then?” 

Achilles lets out a sharp huff of a laugh. It sounds weary more than anything. “I don’t know if ‘better’ is the word I’d use.” He scratches Laika behind the ears, staring longingly at the wall. “God, I just wish they’d stop and listen to each other for a minute.” 

Patroclus sighs. He wiggles down on the bed to lie next to Achilles. Achilles shifts to face him, his eyes so trusting and sad and lovely that they tug at Patroclus’ heart. 

“Do you think there’s something I could do?” Achilles asks. “Speak to them, maybe, or—”

“No,” Patroclus says. Then he amends it to a much softer, “It isn’t up to you, Achilles. What your parents do, what they say to each other. And it isn’t your fault if they argue. It’s up to them to fix things between them.” 

“I know,” Achilles says morosely. He blows at a golden curl that’s hanging over his nose, only for it to land messily across his brow. Patroclus reaches out, without thinking, to tuck it behind his ear. Achilles smiles, and something inside Patroclus grows warm and fuzzy at the sight. 

“It sounds rather quiet now,” Patroclus remarks, taking back his hand. “Do you think it’s time for dinner?”

“Fuck, I hope so. I’m starving.” 

They stay in Patroclus’ room for a while longer, listening to music and taking turns playing tug-of-war with Laika—most of her toys, as well as her dog bed and her food and water bowls, once strewn all over the house, are in Patroclus’ room now, once Thetis declared that she doesn’t want the dog anywhere near the kitchen or the living room or wherever else she or her family might be— before they finally decide it’s safe enough for them to go downstairs. 

I also have some doodle offerings, from a collection of doodles I've been working on featuring Disaster Achilles and his pink hair tie:

Tagging forth to @baejax-the-great @juliafied @elveny @pikapeppa @mogwaei @midnightprelude @gwensparlour @mary-aries @figsandphiltatos @annalyia @alibonbonn @darlingpoppet @in-arlathan @gloriesunsung and anyone else who wants to share a snippet of their work! Let me know if you want/don't want to be tagged for these things, I always draw a blank 😅

[louis-ii-reyes-strand]

thank you @birdclowns @thisbuildinghasfeelings @heartstringsduet @lemonlyman-dotcom @cold-blooded-jelly-doughnut for the tags today 🖤 I don't have a lot to share (i've had the busiest week of my life probably) so i'm just gonna post the end of the scene from this snippet i posted a while ago from Tangled Roots.

“You need a ride home and–” 

“I can get the bus. I’m thirteen, I’m not a baby!”

Luisa held her hands up placatingly. “As evidenced by you getting the bus here all by yourself, well done!” 

Carlos glared at her, felt anger buzz under the skin of his upper arms, and felt his core tremble as he curled his hands into fists. He didn’t need to be mocked right now. 

 “I came to tell you that I can come to your game next week.”

The anger he had been feeling drained out in an instant. “What?” 

“Yep, I moved some things around.”

Carlos had been disappointed when Luisa told him about the plans she had with her friends, though he tried not to show it. They had spent hours in the backyard throwing to one another, making up drills to practise other skills, and he wanted to show off to her. Show off how much she’d helped him. Ana and their mom would be there, but they didn’t get baseball like Luisa did, they didn’t live and breathe for it like Luisa did. It wasn’t Ana or his mom who threw the pitch on the ball he broke the shed window with. It wouldn’t be the same.

“But you’re supposed to go to Gabriella’s family lakehouse.” 

Luisa shrugged. “There’ll be other times.” 

“They’re selling it and this is the last weekend they can use it.” 

Luisa shrugged again. “It’ll probably be boring anyway. They already sold the jet skis.”

Carlos threw himself at her, careful not to jab himself in the stomach with her knees or knock her off where she was still sitting on the fence. “Thank you,” he whispered as she slowly returned the hug. 

He felt her brush a hand over the back of his head, then squeeze him tightly.

“He wants to be there, you know?”

Carlos sighed and tried to pull away, giving in as soon as Luisa showed a little resistance. He could’ve broken her hold if he wanted to, already strong for a thirteen-year-old, but he didn’t want to. They didn’t hug very often anymore. 

“I know.” He scrunched his eyes closed against the tears he’d been fighting since he found out. “But it’s my first game of the season and he promised.” 

“I know, Chico.” 

“I just don’t understand why he never tries to come,” He confessed in a small voice, in part because he didn’t want Luisa to hear him, in part because he didn’t want to hear himself. “I’ve seen the pictures and videos of him at all your games, or Ana’s dance recitals. Why doesn’t he want to come to mine? What did I do wrong?”

Luisa made a hurt sound and it broke Carlos’ heart more than finding out his Dad wasn’t going to make his game. He did that, he hurt her, and he never wanted to, not really. “You haven’t done anything wrong. I promise you, Dad wants to be there, but his work is important.” She jostled him in her arms, trying to defuse the tension. “And besides, I’m going to be at every game and I’m a much better coach than Dad is.” 

Carlos huffed a half laugh despite himself. “You better be.”

Luisa squeezed him again. “I’ll be there whenever you need me.” 

It felt like she was promising a lot more than a season of baseball games. 

Carlos sniffed. It was too much, they didn’t talk like this, they didn’t make declarations like that. They knew, of course, they did, but it had to remain unsaid. That was the Reyes way. 

Luisa let go of him and then hopped off the fence, jogging a few steps so her back was to him, giving Carlos a chance to quickly wipe at his eyes. Luisa had broken their rules, and Carlos wasn’t going to break any more by crying. 

“Now,” she said as she turned around. Her eyes were glassy and red-rimmed, but her face was dry. “Do you want to saddle up and head out onto the trail? Or should we go home and work on your ground balls?” 

Carlos scoffed, the noise thick with emotion and the unshed tears he hadn’t quite willed away. “I don’t need to work on my ground balls.”

Luisa shook her head with a smirk, eyes flashing with mischief. “You do if you ever want to play short for the Astros.” 

Carlos bristled, he would show her just how good he’d gotten. “Let's go home.”

He began to walk towards the gate but a noise from Luisa stopped him. She held the lead rope that had been hanging on the fence up in her hand. “Are you forgetting something?” 

Carlos slunk back over to her and snatched the rope out of her hand. She may have helped with how he was feeling about his dad, but he still didn’t appreciate her telling him what to do. 

Her laughter followed him all around the paddock while he tried to get [horse name] back in his stable. 

Luisa made him thank Tío Tomás before they left even though Carlos had seen him for all of a minute before disappearing into the stable. Then she packed him into the passenger seat of the pickup truck she wasn’t technically supposed to drive and let him pick which CD they listened to for the short journey home.

i'm tagging: @carlos-in-glasses @reyesstrand @bonheur-cafe @lightningboltreader @liminalmemories21 @chicgeekgirl89 @welcometololaland @theghostofashton (if you've already done it and i've missed it, please tell me!) and no pressure as always 🫶🏻

[22degreehalo]

Okay. okay. I've gotten to part-way through Resonance. And then skipped ahead to read a couple of Eighteen Years chapters. And I think that's where I'm going to stop when it comes to the Turning-verse. At least for now. And I have. I have a lot of thoughts and feelings!!!

Or: anyone wanna see me ramble for almost 3,000 words about a fanfiction series? :)

So. I'm stopping because I've realised once again that there actually isn't any cathartic ending to the fic, seeing as the final part was never completed. I asked that question on tumblr about it and never got an answer but checked it over and saw that the final chapter had Josh/Sam tagged, to my relief, and then somehow in my head that morphed into it also being a tag on the the chapter before it as well, but nope: just Eighteen years. And I read a couple from that fic and it's... still not endgame Josh/Sam, right up until the last ever written.

Which: on the one hand, if I read any further, I'll just be making myself suffer. Because I do love angst and pining and complicated relationships and all that other delicious glory the Turning-verse provides, and I can even enjoy tragic or bittersweet endings, but in general, I can pick up on when that's gonna be too much for me. Did you know that I had to quit Dirk/Jake for a while because their dysfunctional relationship just stepped over the line of 'delicious angst' to 'wow I am. actually in an awful mood over this.'? (I also threw up after Jake first declared his interest in accepting Dirk's feelings, lmao. In fairness, I don't think I am capable of feelings that strong at all anymore.) (Also, that was why I threw myself so heavily into Little Busters!, so... good ending?) And with these two......... man. :'( I do just want to see them able to be together. In the Turning-verse it felt like every time they were happy or trusted each other before the end of a fic, everything was about to go horribly wrong... It takes a lot to get me actively searching for short fluff fics for a ship, lmfao.

But also. I've been reading so intensively because I needed to get to the part where things get better. And now I know that that part doesn't exist!!!!! (Not really.) That's a bit of a relief, oddly. I feel like I'm done.

Maybe I'll look for another post-canon fic and pretend that's Turning-verse, hahaha. There was one I really wanted to read until I realised it was post-canon and then thought I should save those for later.

man. I'm not looking forward to Sam leaving the show. :(

also last night I couldn't stop thinking. many MANY things but among them I just imagined years-later Turning-verse the two getting along better again for a while and then falling into bed together again. And afterwards just... being able to talk openly. And Sam being so firm about things but also, at least for this one period, understanding Josh's fears. And Josh wanting so badly for this night to not end. But afterwards maybe... maybe Josh really could get better.

I'm really glad the last of the Eighteen Years snippets exists. I've drawn the connection between Josh's PTSD and his internalised homophobia, and The Decay of Lying implied that pretty dang heavily, but that's the first time it was directly pointed out. That, actually, starting a new very stressful relationship immediately after he got shot and contracted PTSD was kind of... always destined to end in failure. I'm glad that Josh had someone who was able to give him that version of the story. Of course, the reason he hasn't had anyone is because he's too scared to talk about it... so. catch 22. :'(

I actually.............. had some mixed feelings about The Decay of Lying as a story tbh!!!!!!!!!!!!!

like. DON'T GET ME WRONG. the whole thing of Josh STILL trying to insist that he isn't *gay* (or bi, for that matter), after all these years of being madly in love with and sleeping with Sam?! Chefs kiss. Perfection. Holy shit. They don't give you that good shit in fandom anymore holy fucking FUCK!!!!!!!! Like, that's it, that's the REAL realistic goddamn representation there: no maturing gradually over time, just balling up that thing you never want to admit or talk about and keeping it pressed down never to see the light of day because things are going okay without it, right? Right??? :')

Given the title, I thought the fic would focus more on the difficult position our boys would be in discussing the president's secret-keeping given their own circumstances. I think it's a little sad that it didn't. I think there was room: it's a weirdly short fic, given how much ground it covers?

Instead, that fic focuses way more on Sam's growing disillusionment with his job and Josh. And that's... eugh, it really does depress me in canon how many blows he takes around this time :( But all of that is intensified in this verse because here it's not just his coworkers keeping things from him but his boyfriend. And I thought this earlier with Speechless, but at a certain point it starts to feel... less like a filling in the blanks and more like the canon distorting the story being told here. All of the characters' actions are in-character in canon by definition (let's just go with that for the sake of the argument, anyway), but they're in-character within the context of CANON. Would Josh have kept all those things from Sam in the context of them actually dating? At the very least part of me wanted somebody to raise the question of whether it's good or sensible to ask Josh specifically to keep these things from him. But that'd be tantamount to admitting that there's a different relationship between them, I know... And then the MS thing is...

Actually, that's another thing I imagined. We know Josh can't tell Sam about the MS if we're sticking to canon scenes, and also because... uh practically speaking. As mad as Sam might be about it (mostly because of earlier context) that's. in no fucking way a thing you can tell somebody else without permission hahahhhh. But I could imagine a Sam who didn't suggest the possibility of coming out to Leo noticing that Josh is distracted and pressing him a bit and Josh admitting at least that yes there is something they're keeping from him. Of course Sam would be angry at first but once they've had some little fight I think he would just be able to accept begrudgingly that they're waiting. And after he was told it'd make sense. Hell, maybe in this version Josh gets through and convinces the president (through Leo?) to tell him earlier. (which. AGAIN suggests ~things~ but. in my version maybe Josh can take some baby steps forward. Maybe we can even envision how things could've turned out better!!!!!!!!!! frankly I think it'd be a weight off Josh's shoulders to just, drop a bomb on him and have Leo ask about it. Get it over with. Done and dusted.

But. overall it is a very depressing chapter in terms of Sam's overall... idealism and belief in humanity and such and. And I'm remember Dirk/Jake, up there. It is bumming me out more than my ideal capacity. :(

And then we have the big moment. Like i said above, I LOVE that the fic finally drew that clear connection between his panic attacks wrt Sam and his flashbacks: Sam recognising that and moving to comfort him (despite his confusion) was actually really, really good, and under different circumstances, you can tell things might have turned out better.

But... I sorta. Don't entirely love the WAY they broke up. Like. Josh trying to 'I don't know if I'm breaking up with you' is, in theory, kinda perfect? But it's all just so... I know it seems wrong to say that it's sudden when they'd been growing apart for a whole chapter. But that was malaise, not panic. When Sam tries to initiate sex, Josh is *panicked* in a way he never has been about sex before, and we never get a proper explanation for it all? The other times they broke up, there was some external event triggering Josh's fear, but here we don't get any hint of that. Yes, they're working on a campaign again, but in that case I'd expect just... him being more furtive and jumpy in general, not reluctant to have sex with Sam in his own living room. The tone just doesn't seem to match up.

Especially since he really had been jumping higher and higher over Sam's bars up until this point. In Interlude, they're actually pretty goddamn *functional*. Josh goes on a weekend trip and gets photographed with him because he knows this means something to Sam and wants to support him!!! Sam talks about them (mostly theoretically) in the context of goddamn MARRIAGE and Josh sits and works through his panic in 2 seconds and pushes through.

I guess maybe you could say that the pressure was getting to Josh, but again: what we got in the rest of The Decay of Lying was lethargy. Lack of motivation. I can say from personal experience that unfortunately, sometimes the best antidote to anxiety is to just be so tired and apathetic you just can't care anymore. Though I guess the lethargy was mostly on Sam's end. Could he have been missing the signs of Josh's ever-increasing stress?

When they broke up the first time, they had no clue what they were doing: Josh was so severely obviously not ready and Sam fooled himself about that until he couldn't anymore. The second time, they found something mostly mutual: it still wasn't great, and it was still largely caused by Josh and his panic attacks over CJ and the letter, but they were able to mutually agree that it was going badly and to be friends instead.

I sorta... wasn't expecting the third break-up to be even worse than the first one. That's hard.

Maybe if the series was totally completed, this'd be the big dramatic third-act crisis. (I mean, quite a lot of words are spent after this, so I don't think it's actually in the third act. But plot-structure-wise.) But... they don't get over this. Ever. They never make up properly now because the fic was never completed.

And it seems like even that takes a long, long time. That is... such a long time for things to be so bad between them. Maybe I need to peek in at the in-between parts and learn that Sam really actually kept thinking of Josh much the same way he did during the 10-year gap when he almost got married to Lisa, but they end things so fucking badly at the break-up and then Sam is still so resigned and depressed about life and the world and it's just... ugh. Dirk/Jake. It's giving it. It's giving me the stomach swirlies just one angle percentage too acute for me to bear. :(

And Josh seems to really fall in love with Donna. I know that's not endgame, but... the fic never ended, so. It is, actually?? And also, I don't want them to have a messy break up either :(((

Just. What I mean is: Josh's sort-of-break-up comes so out of the blue, and then it's all just so completely and irrevocably final. Which... I'm not mad at Sam for not trying harder to understand him. He has the right to react like he did. But. It feels like, in a romance story like this, he would feel a higher proportion of sad to anger. That he would want to know what triggered these thoughts in Josh all of a sudden. I know it spirals in part because of Andy, but: well, the author didn't have to bring Andy back at that exact moment!!!

And if not Sam, then... Josh really does fucking adore Sam. Is even more head over heels for him than Sam is for Josh. Yes in a moment of weakness he might try to 'semi break up' with Sam like he did, but I can't really see him just... leaving it there. I could honestly see him not even letting Sam leave the apartment, then. I could see him begging. I know it's not post-Rosslyn anymore (and even then, he only suggested Sam not see him because of the picture CJ found, remember!!!!!), but after everything they've been through, it's hard to imagine Josh not trying harder.

Which is to say. Again, I'm hoping the author didn't have them break up when they did primarily to keep the canon context of Josh dating Amy. Like... when they started writing they couldn't have known what would happen in later seasons (as we see from the Lisa episode that permanently severed it from strict canon compliance), but surely it was inevitable that one of them would get an unambiguous love interest? Or maybe I've being too pessimistic and Amy had nothing to do with it.

I started Resonance largely because I liked the idea of Amy lecturing Josh all about toxic masculinity and him struggling not to have any kind of healthy profound personal epiphany about it. I quickly realised that I remembered very little about Amy from my half-hearted first watch of the series like 10 years ago, lol. But apparently he does end up admitting to her that he had a thing with Sam, so I like that. I want to read that.

In fact, the whole extended period of them getting into other relationships but with one another weighing on their minds, and the slow process of being able to speak about it and reveal the truth to others... that is the sort of thing I daydream about a lot!!!! I'm often reluctant to put it down into fanfic because it's sort of an awkward space for a fic; I want these 2 to be endgame but one to finally admit and have some catharsis over a past queer relationship? Who is the audience for that, anyway? (Me. I'm the audience.)

Except, this time... I don't want to read it. I enjoyed the 18 Years snippet Pillow Talk right up until the end when I bounced off again. It's not even just that I want Sam and Josh to get to be endgame of this particular story, it's that... things ended *so fucking unbelievably badly.* I want Josh to be able to sigh and finally admit that yeah they were young and in love during the campaign, but he just couldn't deal with the stress so they had to end it. And maybe they slept together a couple of times after, like after Rosslyn, but they remained friends.

Like, that's one of the things I like about this ship: the capacity for those sorts of less-than-ideal but situationally-unavoidable In Between relationships, where you can be fit so easily into either romance or friendship.

But it's still got to be a POSITIVE relationship. It doesn't work if it blew up and they were never able to properly be friends again. Which. I guess they must manage somewhat, in 18 Years. Josh is trying to make Sam president. But fuck. The fallout is just... a touch too harsh, here. Dirk/Jake.

I'm a little sad Sam didn't get to just. Openly have a boyfriend for a while, after. Or maybe he does, in Winter Sun? I would've expected a Sam/OMC tag. It seems like he gets back together with Lisa, which is depressing, but at least it's depressing in the 'that's a bad idea' sense rather than the Josh/Donna sense of 'yeah they could've been really happy!! btw this is Sam/Josh endgame. But also not.'

I thought Andy's reintroduction might possibly lead to that. But I kinda dig the bringing back of Matt Skinner. I only read the prequel once I saw him show up in The Decay of Lying (I always meant to get back to it sometime after Turning Myself Into You), so when Andy made the comment about Matt hesitating for years about dating a reporter I just had to slowly cover my face remembering that whole part of Contradictions....... If only those two knew that Josh was responsible for (or, okay, at least had some sort of role in) their relationship!!!!

also. in terms of all the 'i know you know' etc. etc. stuff. Sam hanging out with Andy and Andy's boyfriend comes too and Matt being an old friend of Josh's. there's a lot to do with all that. mainly stuff that would make Josh very uncomfortable but liiiike there's a reason I enjoyed the fic so much this far?????

okay. I think I might have gotten out all the thoughts I've had today. Somehow :'D

Y'know, the surprisingly fun part of The Decay of Lying not quite hitting right? I get to go back to the end of Tripartisan and all of Interlude and pretend that's the end of the series and imagine a happier canonical ending <333 Maybe I really should split things off at Josh telling him there's a secret and go from there.

Which is to say that I'm not talking about *fixing* the series. It is very very very very good!!!!!!!!!! But, well. Whenever I really really enjoy something that inspires me a lot, I've just got to come up with other idea for how things might have gone differently, you know? Not necessarily *better*, just... differently.

Which is to say that if Jae Gecko is still out there - well, for one thing, this was all written a very long time ago so I'm not sure my nitpicking above would have any relevance at all anymore, lmfao. But if I did get to speak with them, I would just be... super mega fangirly, beginning to end. That's all I'd need to say <3333

[bluewren]

WIP Wednesday

Thanks for tagging me @melisusthewee and @nirikeehan

This snippet is from a Dream scene of Taliesen and Solas playing chess. It's basically their closure.

“You’ve bought the set!” Solas exclaims, smiling as his finger lightly brushed over the glossy stone pieces.

“I never quite forgot those puppy eyes you had when you looked at the set.” The fondness of the eyes looking upon them brings a smile onto Taliesen’s lips. “I kept saying we could afford it but you insisted you’re content without it."

“Such luxuries would have been unwise in times of fighting.”

A blue gem of lyrium had a speckling shine over fluttering flakes of snow, held in place by the ring of gold that trimmed the piece’s edges. The memory of the chess set was as finely crafted as the set they saw displayed inside the Val Royeaux storefront. Yet as all memories in the Fade, there were imperfections, sensory[[ impressions]] that her mind couldn’t fill in.

The bishop grated like granite sand on his fingers and without the true mirror gloss of marble. It was a sensation that Taliesen would not have understood, given her meager upbringing. That is how Solas knew this is a memory formed out of regret for a decision never taken, yet it was regret enough to create an impression in this world.

With a puff of his breath and a fine fiber cloth wipe, the piece is polished into a smooth porcelain shine.

“We should play a game.” Solas grabs both her hands, not remembering to set the bishop down.

They were alone in their tower, snow piled onto the balcony but now cold was felt as the two former lovers played one last game of chess together with the candle light keeping her company in a place of just them.

“You have improved since the last time we've played.” Solas smiles when moving his bishop.

“I've had time to practice many things now that the fighting is over with.” Tali shows a toothy grin when her knight to take his pawn.

He chuckles at that notion, the Inquisition had taken much from Taliesen. It was never meant to be where she belonged, just a stepping stone for her journey, he was at peace now to see her ready to take the next step forward so soon.

“And I see that you’ve been enjoying your time with Sera.” Solas moves his rook.

Tali lifts her bishop and points at her opponent. She raises a brow, “I’ve never thought you’d actually comment on that.”

“Far from it.” Solas shook his head once. “Whoever you choose to be with is your own business. I’m merely elated that you’re doing well.”

“Thank you. She has been an amazing partner and has been quite dependable,” Tali swaps Solas’s bishop with her own bishop. She had a satisfied smile, waiting for Solas’s reaction. “I remembered when you pulled that maneuver on Bull. That trick won’t keep working forever.”

The time gone from Skyhold has made Solas nostalgic for his Inquisition brethren. It was a brief time, but no matter how brief there was much that he learned from all the exceptional individuals that their war had gathered. For even if that time is over, he is relieved to see that continue having fruitful lives.

“We have all changed, haven’t we?” He moves his queen to take the bishop.

“Correct. There’s still much work that still needs to be done.” She moves her rook to challenge the queen. “But I don’t find the work all consuming anymore.”

When her burdens ended, Solas’s burden’s had gotten heavier. It was a lonely path that he had to walk, he was grateful that it didn’t have to be hers too.

There was hesitation before taking his next move, his piece was not one he could afford to lose this far into his game, nevertheless Solas had to press forward too. He moves his queen to accept Taliesen’s challenge.

“Knight takes queen. Right where I wanted everything to be.” Taliesen declares as her knight takes the place of Solas’s queen. She folds her hand together with satisfaction. There were no pieces that he had in place to hold her knight’s advances. Seeing this causes a proud smirk to form on his lips. He simply moves a pawn.

tagging @milesmentis | @cleverblackcat | @maebird-melody | @wailing-willow

[yr-hen-ogledd]

Have you got any Iron Tusks lore lying around, or are they a completed project? I've been scrolling through the tag snapping up those gorgeous in-universe fluff snippets, and it's made me really curious about their backstory.

Ok so first of all thanks for saying a nice thing about my writing, which I have much less confidence in than I do in my painting. I’m super happy it grabbed your interest!

As for the Great Iron Tusks Fluff Bible… Well, for most of this evening I thought it’d been lost when I upgraded to my new(er) PC. But apparently I never delete anything ever and having done a bit of digging, well: here’s just about the entire history of the chapter, up to end of the 41st millenium & the creation of the Great Rift. Delve beneath the cut if you dare.

 Caveats: I read the background for the Warhammer 40,000 universe back in, like, 1996? ‘97? I haven’t paid too much attention since. I much prefer to just make shit up. I dip in here & there but you may find bits in here that seem to contradict actual canon - roll with it, I guess? It’s a big universe governed by an unreliable megabureaucracy; there’s room for more than one version of the truth.

++REF::CS+IRON_TUSKS

ADT.ASTARTES.DES.IRON.TUSKS

>IRON TUSKS: Adeptus Astartes chapter. Founded 738.M41 using Ultramarines gene-seed on Khaskal IV, Ultima Segmentum. Supervising officer Capt. Jun Harkenas (ex-Silver Skulls), subordinate officers including Capt. Astor Valk (ex-Silver Skulls), Capt. Haral Gor (ex-Carcharodon Astra), Reclusiarch Bron Ovidor (ex-Doom Eagles), Sgt. Torias Telion (Ultramarines, secondment), assisted by advisory council led by Barad Valur Arendt & other tribal elders.

On advice of Capt. Gor and the elders of the laghun, attending hiero-scrivenor Gorganaeus grants permission to Captain Harkenas to alter original ministorum designation BLACK PALADINS to IRON TUSKS in recognition of indigenous ursid life-forms known locally as Roortagha. Harkenas also orders chapter livery changed to deep crimson to fit with native blood rituals and warrior traditions. The Adeptus Terra’s initial audit detects minor mutations of the oolitic kidney, Betcher’s gland & the mucranoid gland, producing a moderately toxic & caustic airborne suspension when the marines’ sweat evaporates. The mutation falls well within acceptable levels of deviation and the founding is consecrated. The chapter is officially armed on St. Burden’s Day, 744.M41, fighting strength 350 scouts, 250 marines, plus command staff and various supporting elements including 3 strike cruisers. Captain Harkenas is named First Marshall, Captain Valk is named 2nd Company Marshall ; Master of the Armoury, Captain Gor is named 3rd Company Marshall ; Master of Recruits ; Bron Ovidor becomes High Chaplain. Sgt. Telion returns to Macragge.

745.M41: Hive Fleet Behemoth descends upon Ultima Segmentum. The Great Devourer carves a bloody path through the Imperium’s suprised and confused defenders leaving only lifeless rocks in its wake. Bio-ships appear at system terminus without warning after listening posts on Brennan’s World and Valentina are overrun by hostile xenoforms. Massively outnumbered, First Marshall Harkenas orders Khaskal IV evacuated and the chapter’s gene-seed secured aboard the strike cruiser Silverback. Harkenas and Ovidor lead half the chapter’s evocatii in a forlorn delaying action. Behemoth is eventually stopped at enormous cost, but Khaskal is stripped of all life weeks beforehand. The surviving brothers make a final return to salvage what equipment & armour they can, but leave the system within a week of arrival.

The Iron Tusks, now fleet-based, appear to drift between campaigns for several years, intervening in battles at Verrae, St. Nazaire, Xavierus and Sacristan. At Xavierus, Major-General Valdestin of the 120th Cadian Expeditionary records the Iron Tusks deploying “4 companies in good order, though unorthodox in equipment.” At Sacristan, Captain Serrus of the Star Phantoms notes the Iron Tusks battlefleet joining their own with 5 ships of the line, “three of which had clearly been reclaimed from unsanctioned sources.” Both commanders describe their allies scavenging war materiel from their enemies and after Sacristan, in which the combined Astartes forces drive off a raiding force of Red Corsairs traitors, the Iron Tusks (apparently now under the command of Haral Gor) pursue the traitors into the Maelstrom “with relish.”

The following decades paint a confusing picture: in 786.M41 they appear in the journal of the Rogue Trader Jelena diVerre as masters of Loghain’s Cross, a feudal world to the galactic south of Baal. Certainly, a number of imperial records from this time period make mention of the Iron Tusks fighting numerous battles against the orks raiding out of the Galatian Belt and against eldar pirates on Barre. But by the time Waaagh! Gormug makes a ruin of several Imperial worlds in 802, the Iron Tusks have apparently moved on. While the Blood Angels defend Loghain’s Cross, the Iron Tusks are recorded fighting “at chapter strength” against the bloody, Alpha Legion-led rebellion on Vittkenstein

“Though all who know the space marines know the essential diversity bred by their independent formations, I declare I never encountered a body of fighting men of such strange attitudes as these - leastways not as allies. The Irontusks (sic) seem to view their vocation almost as a great sport. They count kills upon their armour, they swear a great deal, they make indecipherable guestures toward the enemy (many of which I suspect are lewd in character!). Throne preserve us, at one juncture I visited a defensive position to inspect the conditions and found one of them sat in the cupola of his tank, smoking a lho-stick of very ill flavour. And yet who can complain of their devotion to the Emperor’s cause? After every raid they return with fallen comrades over their shoulders, bloodied banners of the enemy and grotesque smiles across scarred faces. One of their officers asked me if the regiment had encountered foes such as these before and when I answered him in the affirmative he declared that his men would be following us home.”- Colonel Ferdinand Maxwell-Gray, Mordian 18th.

Certainly the Iron Tusks do seem to have moved erratically toward the Mordian system for a time, but their route is difficult to ascertain. The war on Vittkenstein lasts another 4 years, but after that various naval records refer to the Iron Tusks retiring to a number of different homeworlds: Ironhold, Merite, Kyushin II, Jara-na-vere-ko, Elva XI and as many as 8 other planets are recorded as the chapter’s home base. Furthermore, having reached Mordian they seem to have moved on shortly after in the direction of the Cadian Gate and the Eye of Terror. More informatively, we can say with certainty the date at which they did so. Having claimed the death world of Morsava sometime before 984.M41, they subsequently sell the planet in 999.M41 to the governor-militant of Mordian for the perfunctory sum of 1 Imperial Credit - three days after the onslaught of the 13th Black Crusade. At this time Battlefleet Obscurus naval records indicate a fleet of 7 strike cruisers, one battle barge (designated Tough Love) and numerous escorts, bulk haulers and sundry other ships leaving the Mordian subsector and bearing galactic south-west.

++RECORD ENDS++

++THOUGHT FOR THE DAY: A CLOSED MIND IS WELL-DEFENDED

It would appear that the Iron Tusks have adopted a modus operandi by which they occupy any world which they are able to take from enemy forces, staying long enough to recover losses in men and materiel, before abandoning it in the event that better ‘sport’ presents itself elsewhere. It is a pattern which has seen battle companies attach themselves frequently to Imperial army groups unsolicited, apparently to involve themselves in more violence.They seem to act without any thought to wider Imperial strategy, or to collateral damage. Can their wilful disregard for authority be tolerated? More gravely, is their pursuit of violence for violence’s sake not a well-worn trail on the path to damnation? My Lord, I must recommend an immediate Inquisitorial audit be carried out on these rogues - lest rogues be left to turn altogether renegade.

I remain your humble and obedient servant,

9.

There you have it. The rest of it gets written as & when models & projects inspire me to get typing. You’ve seen glimpses of the Tusks post-rift activities - stranded on the wrong side of the sky-scar, scavenging the debris of fallen worlds, occasionally finding gold dust on shattered hulks that float out of the few relatively stable shipping routes across the Cicatrix Maledictum, and sometimes adopting new friends of mysterious origin from the beleaguered worlds of the Imperium Nihilus. There will probably be more in the future! No project is ever really finished until you run out of ideas.

[actuallylorelaigilmore]

Okay... going on a bit of a Schneider x Avery rant for a little bit. I've been reading some of your old posts about them and honestly I really do think they're endgame. If the show were to continue, I think season 3 would've been the closest we ever see Schneider to the family, but I think Avery (bc she doesn't have that much character development) would pull him back to the outer circle for season 4. I don't think they would've brought her back for the finale if they weren't endgame.

(cont) Schneider just barely makes the cut for family in this show. I mean I love him, but the show is about Penelope and her family. If they made too much noise between Penelope’s best friend’s love interest, who has no connection with the rest of the family, it would distract from the main characters too much. Nikki, Schneider’s only other “love” interest had a connection to both Penelope and Alex. But Avery’s there just for Schneider and I’m afraid it would stay that way.

hi there! i started replying to this pair of asks a bit after i got them, once i was in a headspace to be more organized in my reply, cuz a year ago i was off my meds and my brain was a mess. back then, i still didn’t finish it though!! the unfinished reply just sat in my drafts all this time. SO. just for the sake of transparency, the first, original part of my reply is indented, before i write the rest out now. also it’s a long reply so it’s behind a cut. sorry this took me so long <3

hi anon!! i had to wait a while before answering this one because i knew i would need coherent thoughts and that hasn’t been working so well for me lately

you make two important points here, so i’ll start with the schneider side of it. i agree that s3 was the closest that we’ve ever seen schneider to the family, and that makes sense because honestly even as s3 progressed the storylines for everyone in the family, schneider kind of had the biggest, most consistent arc. (i think alex’s was the next biggest/most consistent. elena and pen and lydia’s stories were more episodic in s3 and sometimes connected more to previous season events than the preceding episodes.)

the showrunners/writers had been planning to address schneider’s sobriety for a while and talked a lot with the actor while they worked on it, and i think they handled it really well. but in my opinion, that all builds up to cementing schneider’s place in the family. not just pulling him into the circle, but making it clear that he belongs there–in a way they aren’t likely to go back on. 

we went from penelope shutting the door in his face in 1.13 when he’s telling her they’re like family, to elena joking about him NOT being family in s2 and him telling a comatose lydia that they’re his family while punctuating his grief with jokes…to the entire family rallying around him in 3.12 after they were all a bit more distant earlier in the season.

elena is the first member of the family to actually direct the word ‘love’ his way! penelope tries to make it clear that he’s important to her just as he is and that he needs to fight his addictions not just for his sake but because of her family, especially the kids! schneider interrupts his big romantic reunion with avery to focus on lydia officially claiming him as an alvarez!

this snippet of an interview todd grinnell gave after s3 mentions the tension between any future schneider would have with avery, and his ties to the family. i don’t know how much the plans for a potential s4 might have changed over time, but since we know the writers do discuss plot arcs with the actors in advance (or at least they have done so with todd before) i believe that when he said this, it was based off his awareness of what the writers were thinking. 

which means that avery could have been brought back to be a source of future conflict–and after schneider’s s3 declaration that ‘family is everything’ it’s not guaranteed that he would choose avery in that scenario. i could see him learning to balance and compromise, maybe, but schneider drifting out of the picture because of his love interest wouldn’t make sense for who he is–unless the actor was leaving the show maybe? i still wouldn’t find it very believable though.

i do agree that avery’s only connected to the show through schneider. that actually bugged me in s3, because they gave her so many little great moments in the beginning to establish who she was, and then she really never interacted with the family even when she was in scenes with them!! they either need to fully include her in s4 or keep her more separate; now that we’re more familiar with her, it won’t make sense at all for her to be in the apartment or at events and ignoring the rest of them most of the time. (unless that’s part of the plot, of course.) i think that avery won’t be likely to get much actual plot unless it starts to be about non-schneider things, like how she affects family members.

i honestly have no idea if schneider and avery are endgame or not. india is too adorable for me to be against it, despite my many objections to how avery was handled in s3 (so much potential after that meet-cute! i ranted in multiple essays about about it!). because the actors are married it wouldn’t surprise me if that’s what the show does, letting schneider’s storylines going forward be more about him maturing and dealing with his first serious lasting relationship. 

i think that how long the show gets to continue existing will also have a lot to do with what turns out to be endgame–if it ends on its own terms in a few years, then we’ll know what their intended endgame was. but if it gets cancelled then i’ll always wonder what they might have been really aiming for.

the biggest thing that you and i seem to disagree about, though, anon, that probably affects how we see the avery stuff playing out, is schneider’s role on the show. you say that he just barely makes the cut for family, and i would argue (as i sort of started to, messily, above) that in fact it’s season 3 that doesn’t just confirm but yells that he’s completely family. 

in the first scene of the season, he comes in and tells the rest of them who their own dead relative is, and in his last scene, avery passes along the news of lydia’s official adoption of him. between all of that, the family sees him turn into someone else while he’s trying to please his father–and they see the relapsed alcoholic he’s never been in their presence before–and they commit even harder to making him feel loved and like he’s a part of them. 

along those same lines, i’d also argue that schneider is a ‘main character.’ not only just technically (because he’s been included in things like promo images for the show since s1, where leslie wasn’t) but in terms of the story. if he wasn’t a main character in seasons 1 and 2, he definitely became one in season 3, when two whole episodes were formed around his arc in addition to his usual mini stories alongside the family.

tl;dr i have no idea if avery is schneider’s endgame but he is an alvarez now and i’ll believe him choosing her over his family when i see it 

[inevitably-johnlocked]

Hi! I've been craving some lengthy-but-not-too-lengthy friends to lovers johnlock recently, any suggestions? (I'm not usually a fan of AUs, but I'm open to them :)) Thanks so much!

Hi Nonny!

Listen, I’ve a TONNE of Friends-to-Lovers fics! And I’ve been waiting for this ask to come in, so I’m just posting all of ones I have sorted so far! I sort them by length, so you can check out the first couple dozen fics for the ones you’re looking for, and continue on if you’re enjoying it XD I also specifically state if a fic is an AU, so you can skip those ones too :)

FRIENDS TO LOVERS

(fics below the cut)

See also:

T-RATED Pt. 1: Friends To Lovers Fics || [MOBILE LINK]

For a Case Trope 

Fake Relationship / For a Case Part 2

For a Case Pt 3 / Links to Similar Fics 

Meeting the Family With a Fake Relationship 

Married For a Case / Fake Husbands 

Friends to Lovers (Community Recs)

Friends to Lovers (Alexx’s List)

Enemies to Lovers Fic Recs (Alexx’s List)

Enemies to Lovers – Part 2 (Alexx’s List)

When Morning Comes by Youarethelightoftheworld (T, 423 w. || Christmas Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Lazy Mornings/Morning After, Fluff and Angst, Sleepy Cuddles, Domestic Fluff, Cuddling / Snuggling, Emotional Hurt/Comfort) – “Sherlock,” says John solemnly, “I’m not sure we can go anywhere today.”

The Basics by wearitcounts (Sher_locked_up) (T, 611 w. || Schmoop, Fluff, Coffee, Kissing, Friends to Lovers, The Morning After) – Morning snogs, and coffee.

New World, Old Words by thedeafwriter (G, 641 w. || Deaf Sherlock, Sherlock Whump, Pining Sherlock, Marriage Proposal, Fluff, Always John) – It was disconcerting to experience. One second, he was laying on the table, breathing in the gas that would make him sleep, the next, he was dragging his eyes open to look around the bright room, trying to wake up.

New Year, New Beginning by DaisyFairy (T, 810 w. || New Year’s Eve, John POV, Post S4, Friends to Lovers) – New Year at a crime scene and John makes a decision.

The Cure for Snoring by Goddess_of_the_Night (G, 1,278 w. || Sleepy Conversations, Bed Sharing, Cuddling, Fluff, Domestic, Platonic / Sleepy Cuddles) – Sherlock and John spend the night in Scotland after finishing a case. The sole Inn in town only has one room left…one bed. This would be fine - if not a bit awkward - if Sherlock hadn’t developed a habit of snoring loudly. John suffers through many hours of sleeplessness before he discovers that skin-to-skin contact stops the noise. Part 1 of Dreamscapes

The Pigeon’s deplorable nesting place by SlothfulSlytherin (G, 1,482 w. || Alternate First Meeting, Humour, Fluff) – Upon returning to London, John Watson took up residence in a mouldy little flat on Baker Street. The flat itself wasn’t all that special or interesting, his new neighbour on the other hand…

Hear No Evil, Speak No Evil by PipMer (T, 1,895 w. || Deaf John, Mute Sherlock, Friends to Lovers, Romance, Fluff and Angst, Character Study, Morse Code, Love Confessions) – John is deaf. Sherlock is mute. There are no two people more suited for each other.

The Marriage Proposal Negotiation by Goddess_of_the_Night (G, 2,161 w. || Dev. Rel., Possessive Sherlock, Insecure Sherlock, Fluff, First Kiss, Post Mary) – Sherlock hasn’t ever really done anything the traditional way, so of course it wouldn’t bother him to propose to John even though they’re not even dating. And the fact that John is already on a date with someone else when he decides to do it? Tedious.

Hell or High water by bluefire301175 (E, 2,250 w. || PWP, Frottage, Alley Sex, First Person POV John, Case-ish Fic, Mutual Pining, Bed Sharing) – John wants. Sherlock wants. Plain and simple.

Let Go by thisisforyou (G, 2,743 w. || Friends to Lovers, First Kiss, Fluff, Anxious / Worried Sherlock) – In the end, separating John’s things from Sherlock’s in the chaos of their sitting room is like pulling a limpet from a wet rock. Especially when the rock is clinging on for dear life, because Sherlock doesn’t want to let go. Short, fluffy h/c Johnlock oneshot.

It’s After That Hurts by jonnyluvssherlock (T, 2,791 w. || City of Angels AU || Fantasy, Fallen Angel Sherlock, Soldier John, Pining Sherlock, Friends to Lovers, Permanently Incomplete Fic) – Sherlock’s an angel stuck as a guardian to danger addict John Watson. Everything is fine until he gets too involved. Now he has to make the choice, eternity alone or one life time with a man who may or may not love him.

Right Foot Red by Irrevocably_Sherlocked (E, 3,089 w. || First Time, Board Games, Frottage, Masturbation, Frottage, PWP) – …ok, it’s juvenile, but at least it’s a game where touching is allowed. And if something more were to happen, well, John can’t say he’d be too upset about that. “What are the rules of this game?” Sherlock asks, the disdain evident on the word ‘game’. “I spin, you do as I say.” John thinks he sees a slight widening of those pale grey eyes at that, just for a fraction of a second, before it is shut down. Oh, this is interesting, he thinks.

The Sweetest Taste In The World by crossroads (G, 3,121 w. || First Kiss, Jealous Sherlock, Fluff, Pining, Friends to Lovers) – The sweetest taste in the world is rarely ever the easiest to come by.

Wish I Was In Heaven Sitting Down by standbygo (M, 3,282 w. || Post-S4, Five Plus One, Missing Scenes, Parenthood, First Kiss, Friends to Lovers, Cuddling & Snuggling, Hurt/Comfort, Declarations of Love, Fluff, Food, John Whump) – Five times when Sherlock and John ate together, and one time they didn’t. A history of the boys, in food.

Stay by msdisdain (M, 3,561 w. || First Kiss / Time, Angst / H/C, Bed Sharing, Nightmares, Blow Jobs, Anal) – John’s nightmares are nothing new. Sherlock’s inability to ignore them, however, is.

Five Times John Cooked Something with Peas and One First Kiss by 221b_careful_what_you_wish_for (T, 3,915 w. || 5 and Ones, Friends to Lovers, Mutual Pining, Cooking / Food, Sick Sherlock, Music, Domestic Fluff, First Kiss) – After John cooks five dinners that slowly reveal their hunger for each other, Sherlock and John finally share a first kiss.

Jukebox by standbygo (T, 3,990 w. || Fluff, Singing/Music, Sherlock’s Mind Palace, Hurt/Comfort, Humour, Friends to Lovers, First Kiss) – After the music halls of Sherlock’s mind palace get damaged by accident, John learns that Sherlock never forgets a song. Even the ones he’d rather forget. But the random singalong brings some unexpected benefits.

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

Hope Springs Eternal by QuinnAnderson  (T, 4,054 w. || Friends to Lovers, Pining Sherlock, Vacation, Anxious Sherlock, Love Confessions, Fluff, Requited Love) – John Watson and Sherlock Holmes go on holiday, and Sherlock has romance on the brain.

Overture by Kate_Lear (M, 4,435 w. || First Kiss / Time, Friends to Lovers, Angry John, Introspection, Dev. Rel., Embarassed / Insecure Sherlock, Morning After, Bed Sharing, Cuddles / Limpet Sherlock) – A short snippet on how John and Sherlock might have got together.

a violent flash of purple by hudders-and-hiddles (E, 4,749 w. || Sex Toys, Friends to Lovers, PWP, Love Confessions, Porn With Feelings, Embarrassed Sherlock, Anal Plugs) – When Sherlock accidentally drops his towel, he ends up revealing a whole lot more than he’d intended.

Cephalalgia by the_beekeeper_of_sussex (E, 4,979 w. || First Kiss, Frottage, Friends to Lovers) – John is in pain and it’s up to Sherlock to set him to rights by any means possible.

Sleeping next to you by Salambo06 (E, 5,018 w. || ASiB Fic, Bed Sharing, Frottage, Mutual Masturbation, Rimming, Anal, First Kiss/Time) – Based on an Anonymous Prompt: “So, that scene from ASiB when Mrs H has been attacked by the american CIA guy & John, Sherlock & she are in Mrs H’s kitchen when John says “She’ll have to sleep upstairs in our flat tonight. We need to look after her.” to which Sherlock replies with “no”. John of course suggested that because he cares about her safety, but maybe he also did it cause he /wanted/ that to happen. What if they finally agreed on letting her have John’s or Sherlock’s bed & J&S sleep in the same one?“ Part 12 of Tumblr Collection

What Happens in Vegas (is legally binding in the United Kingdom) by  moonblossom (E, 5,051 w. || Accidental Marriage, Friends to Husbands to Lovers, CSI Crossover, Fluff & Porn, Bathtub Sex, Hand Jobs, First Time) – When a case sends the boys to Vegas, John comes out of it with a bit more than he bargained for. Part 19 of Prompt Fills, Remixes, Works inspired by others

Every Little Thing by the_beekeeper_of_sussex (E, 5,066 w. || First Time / Kiss, Fluff, Frottage, Come as Lube, Embarassed Sherlock, Porn With Feelings) – When Sherlock walks in on John making tea wearing nothing but a tight pair of boxer-briefs things get a little heated…physically and emotionally.

Strings by EstherShapiro (E, 5,267 w. || Virgin Sherlock, First Time, Massage, Friends to Lovers, Fingering, Anal, PWP) – Sherlock wakes his doctor up. Was this weird? John was sitting on his bed, late at night, rubbing his hands over another man’s body? That was supposed to be weird, right? Then again, this wasn’t just some man, it was Sherlock. They were so used to each other that John didn’t even think to question it. It wasn’t weird.

Sociopathy and Other Fibs by kinklock (M, 5,314 w. || 5+1, Miscommunication, Humour, Friends to Lovers, Post S3, Love Confessions) – Five times John called Sherlock out, and one time Sherlock returned the favour.

Adjacent by weeesi (E, 5,711 w. || Bed Sharing, Fluff and Smut, Pining Idiots, On a Trip, Frottage) – Sherlock and John spend the night at a hotel in adjoining rooms, and keep finding excuses to visit each other’s rooms, until WHOOPS they’re sharing a bed.

Recovery by thesignsofserbia (T, 5,948 w. || HLV-Fix It / Rewrite, Villain Mary, Pining Sherlock, Major Character Injury, Scars, Self-Hatred, POV Sherlock, Doctor John, Friends to Lovers) – Set after the confrontation with Mary, and Sherlock’s cardiac arrest, John stays at 221B to aid Sherlock’s recovery, forcing them to confront wounds both old and new as they try to heal their damaged relationship.

Just a Touch by MissDavis (E, 6,248 w. || Bed Sharing, Masturbation, First Time/Kiss, Friends to Lovers, Sharing a Room) – John has trouble falling asleep these days. There’s one thing he can do that always seems to help, but he’s stuck in this hotel room with Sherlock and doesn’t think he’ll get the chance. How will he ever find relief and a good night’s sleep?

Five Times John Noticed But Didn’t Really by ScandalousMinds (T, 6,383 w. || Domestics, Fluff/Angst, Bratty Sherlock, Idiots, Pre-Slash, Jealous Sherlock, Love Confessions) – 5 times John (thought) he noticed something peculiar about his and Sherlock’s relationship but really missed the obvious.

The Strait of Juan de Fuca by mightypog (T, 6,400 w. || Vacation, Love Confessions, Friends to Lovers, Canada, Post-TRF, Love Confessions) – Sherlock is back and all seems forgiven, but something is missing between him and John. Their friendship initially appears intact, but Sherlock doesn’t understand why John seems to be slipping away. Finally, in terror, he tries to reconnect with John by taking him to the one place that seems to inspire any emotional interest in John any more: the Canadian wilderness. While there, Sherlock faces his greatest fear.

Better Than Fiction by Irrevocably_Sherlocked (E, 6,813 w. || Pining Sherlock, Sherlock’s Imagination, Masturbation, BJ’s, First Time / Kiss) – …he opens his eyes, but instead of seeing John he is staring at his bedroom ceiling, the pale plaster a startling contrast from the scene in his head. It had felt so real. He can only imagine what the feel of John’s lips would be like, his taste. But luckily for him, he thinks with a smirk, he’s always had a brilliant imagination.

The space between by Salambo06 (E, 6,830 w. || PWP, Friends to Lovers, Masturbation, Virgin Sherlock, First Time, Miscommunications, Bottom Sherlock, Mutual Pining, Sexual Fantasy) – “It’s for a case,” Sherlock says as soon as John looks down at his computer. John remains silent for a long moment, eyes moving from the screen to Sherlock, before saying, “You don’t have to explain.” His voice is low, too low, and Sherlock looks at the computer, putting the video on pause. “Lestrade asked me-, no, forced me to find out who’s threatening a famous porn star, and the suspect is among his co-stars, so I only need to watch out for any signs from his partners, anything that might show they’re the one sending those threats and I can move to something else.” “Right.”

Onomatopoeia by aquabelacqua (M, 6,904 w. || First Time/Kiss, Frottage, Dirty Talk, Domestics, Word Kink) – Something is the matter with John. Sherlock is determined to figure out what it is. Mark his words.

The Tip Over Into The Inevitable by ivyblossom (T, 6,894 w. || Grief, Cuddles, Insomnia, Hurt/Comfort, Friends to Lovers) - When his father dies, Sherlock avoids sleeping. Then discovers he can’t sleep at all. John finds a way to help.

where the good things grow by anchors (M, 7,066 w. || Tea Shop AU || Alternate First Meeting, Magical Realism, Gardens, Tea, Friends to Lovers) – "I have a magic garden.” As come-ons go, John’s heard worse.

Drawstring by May_Shepard (E, 7,412 w. || Friends to Lovers, UST/RST, Fluff and Smut, Post-TAB, John POV) – John is bothered by Sherlock’s slowly-falling jim-jams… as in hot and bothered and he is trying to deal with a sexy dishevelled Sherlock while also keeping his pining in check.

Six Dates by avawtsn (E, 7,421 w. || 5+1, First Time / Kiss, Post S4-Compliant, POV John) – A rather accidental 5+1 written for the prompt “is this a date?” Hint: it is.

Correspondence by Cleo2010 (T, 8,031 w. || Letters, Friends to Lovers, Jealousy, Dating ) – Sherlock’s been spirited away on a case for Mycroft. Part of the deal was that he and John could communicate via letter until the case was completed. Maybe the cliche is true, absence does make the heart grow fonder. Or perhaps something is growing on the feet in the fridge. Read their letters month by month.

Presence by LostGirl (M, 8,625 w. || Pre-Slash, First Time, Jealousy, Friends to Lovers) – Sherlock has recently noticed a shift in his own perceptions, but he can’t quite figure out when it started.

Bread and Wine and Curry Once a Week by cwb (E, 8,737 w. || Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Stroppy Sherlock, Love Letters, POV John) – Sherlock asks John for relationship advice. Little does he know that it’s him that Sherlock is in love with.

A Lifetime Together by LondonGypsy (M, 8,886 w. || Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Falling in Love, Friends to Lovers, Slow Burn, Pining Idiots, Alternating POVs, Domestics, Retirement) – John and Sherlock falling in love.

Unwasted by patternofdefiance (E, 8,966 w. || Post-S3 / S3 Fix-It, Developing Relationship, Friends to Lovers, Angelo’s, Fluff, First Time, Anal, Cum Play, Flashbacks to ASiB, Mutual Pining, Love Confessions, Bottomlock, Cuddles, Multiple Orgasms, BJ’s, Bed Sharing) – John finds it three months after he’s moved back. He’s on the hunt for something to make for dinner, is scrounging through the cupboards, when he happens upon the graveyard of pasta boxes Sherlock still seems to create when left to his own devices. Behind seven boxes of pasta, all almost completely empty, is a dark-glassed bottle, with a paler coat of dust.It’s unopened. John’s face falls slack when he sees it, instantly recognises it, and for a long moment he just stands and looks at it.

The Newlywed Game: Johnlock Edition by patternofdefiance (E, 9,020 w. || Fake Relationship, Fake Marriage, Friends to Lovers, Humour, Romance, Smut, Case Fic, Self-Esteem Issues) – John and Sherlock pretend to be married in order to be contestants in a Newlywed Game. Of course it’s for a case. Of course it doesn’t stay that way. Part 8 of I Blame Tumblr

What I Hide By My Language, My Body Utters by PixChuu22 (M, 9,047 w. || Fake Relationship, For a Case, Friends to Lovers) - Based on a prompt from Tumblr user thetwogaydetectives - “fake relationship that ends up being so real, they finally realize they are in love.”

The Devil You Know by PipMer (T, 9,300 w. || Friends to Lovers, Romance, Holmes Brothers, Jealous Sherlock) – The Holmes brothers are behaving oddly. John is dazed and confused. In other words, it’s business as usual at 221B Baker Street. Except when it’s not.

Paparazzi by SilentAuror (E, 10,543 w. || Virgin Sherlock, First Time, Friends to Lovers, Post S3) – John moves back into 221B Baker Street after his marriage falls apart and the paparazzi won’t leave him and Sherlock alone about the status of their supposed relationship. Sherlock, of course, never denies it, until one day he does…

Never Have I Ever by hudders-and-hiddles (E, 10,655 w. || Pining Sherlock, First Kiss / Time, Drinking Games, Love Confessions, Fluff and Angst, Friends to Lovers) – John and Sherlock tag along for the Met’s weekly night out, where the evening’s chosen drinking game is Never Have I Ever. Sherlock is reluctant to join in until he realizes he can learn all kinds of new things about John, but he forgets that John might learn a thing or two about him as well.

Rainbow Hearts Retreat by PajamaSecrets (E, 11,638 w. || Fake Relationship, Case Fic, Undercover, Fluff and Smut, Bed-Sharing, Therapy, Humour/Crack, First Time) – “It’s a same-sex couples retreat. For those experiencing troubles in their relationship. Consists of group and couples therapy as well as encouraging socialization between the couples. It’s all in their incredibly dull brochure.” “Rainbow Hearts Retreat,” John read. “Sounds… quite gay.”

Iris by slashscribe (E, 11,948 w. || Parentlock, Pining Sherlock, Post-S3) – Sherlock does his best to make John happy when John comes back to 221B with his new baby after the events of Season 3, but Sherlock has a track record of getting things wrong in this area. This story is an exploration of their gradual shift from friends to lovers, told from Sherlock’s perspective, full of a lot of pining and lack of emotional awareness.

The Slow Burn by CaitlinFairchild (E, 12,097 w. || Romance, Emotional Infidelity, Friends to Lovers, Sherlock POV) – John smiles, something small and private and for him alone, and Sherlock just…he knows. With a heart-stopping certainty, Sherlock suddenly knows. It feels like falling off the edge of a cliff. It feels like falling off the edge of the world. It feels like flying.

Barricade by stitchy (M, 14,127 w. || Friends to Lovers, Angst, Happy Ending, UST, Mary’s Not Nice) – Sherlock has been struggling to keep his feelings at bay for everyone’s sake. Part 1 of Barricade

Speaker for the Bees by antietamfalls (M, 14,649 w. || Deaf Sherlock, Friends to Lovers, First Kiss / Time, Fluff, Sign Language) – It isn’t always easy assisting a deaf detective. Luckily for John, they make a pretty good team.

Hallowed Eve by EventHorizon (T, 14,750 w. || First Kiss, Friends to Lovers, Halloween) – It probably wasn’t the smartest idea to let Sherlock choose the costumes for Halloween, but John never considered himself the smartest man in the room, anyway.

Pattern Behaviour by SilentAuror (E, 14,835 w. || POV First Person Sherlock, Jealous Sherlock, Pining Sherlock, Introspection, Stroppy Sherlock, Light Humour, Friendship, John Takes Care of Sherlock, First Kiss/Time, Wall Kisses, Fluffy Angst, Happy Ending) – Sherlock doesn’t even know why he resents John’s dates so much. Until the day he does know. Slight angst, unrequited feelings (but don’t let that scare you off!)

Twelfth Night by yourdykeinshiningarmor (E, 15,139 w. || Fake Relationship, Christmas, Mutual Pining, Friends to Lovers, Angst & Fluff, BJ’s, Anal) – John is invited to his aunt’s Twelfth Night ball. Sherlock offers to attend with him as a friendly face among strangers, but John’s family force him to address his true feelings for Sherlock.

Till Death Do Us Part by prettysailorsoldier (M, 15,390 w. || Fake Relationship, Case Fic, Friends to Lovers, Fake Marriage, Christmas, Fluff) – When Sherlock links a recent spree of murder-suicides to a psychologist who specializes in marriage counseling, there’s really only one thing to do: Go undercover as a couple in hopes of drawing the killer out. Faking a relationship seems easy enough, but things take a turn when their real issues start to creep into the sessions, and, all the while, a killer is watching, waiting in the shadows for their chance to strike.

Second Chance by SilentAuror (E, 15,816 w. || Post-Divorce, Friends to Lovers, UST, Romance) – Now that John’s divorce has gone through and the dust is settling, Sherlock thinks that he would very much like to see if there is any possibility of moving their friendship in another direction. The only thing is, he has no idea how to go about doing that…

A Hundred Thousand Ways to Say the Name John by Jberry (E, 16,825 w. || Fake Relationship, Fake Marriage, POV John, Pining John, Cruise Ship, Angst & Fluff, Case Fic) –  John Watson and Sherlock Holmes must solve a case on a cruise ship. To get close to the crew and passengers, they must get married for the case on the Baetica. However, their relationship hits rocky seas both due to the case and internal conflicts. Part 1 of Baetica

Between Friends by SilentAuror (E, 18,036 w. || Post S3, Alternating POV, Friends to Lovers, John in Denial, Abduction, Awkward Situations / Miscommunications, Porn With Feels, Blowjobs, Pining, Unrequited, Angst With Happy Ending) – Sherlock gets abducted. As John discovers him tied up naked in an empty storage facility and comes to rescue him, Sherlock’s body has an unfortunate reaction which triggers a series of events. John is convinced that everything will be fine as long as they never discuss it. Sherlock isn’t as sure…

When to Let Go by KendylGirl (M, 22,109 w. || Friends to Lovers, Reverse Reichenbach, Sacrifice, Forgiveness, Angst, Love, Implied Drug Use) – What if it were John who had to die to thwart Moriarty’s plans? John’s supposed death shatters Sherlock, and when he returns, it will challenge the pair to forge a path of forgiveness, to peace, and to find a way back to each other. Part 1 of When to Let Go

Ghost Stories by SwissMiss (M, 22,256 w. || Pining, Holmes Family, Christmas, Friends to Lovers, Slow Burn, Bed Sharing, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, First Time) – Sherlock’s parents think he and John are a couple. They might be onto something.

State of Flux by Atiki (E, 24,655 w. || Sherlock POV, Slow Burn, First Kiss/Time, Friends to Lovers, Frottage, Cuddles and Snuggles, Awkwardness, Insecure/Virgin Sherlock, Romance) – John’s marriage is over and he is finally back home (i.e. at Baker Street, where he belongs). Sherlock is awfully insecure and John is awfully hesitant, and they’re both awkward idiots, of course, but they figure it out. Many First Times happen.

To be Loved by You by TwisterMelody (M, 28,775 w. || Angst, H/C, Friends to Lovers, Post-HLV, Infidelity, Character Death, Background Mystrade, Pining, First Time, Romance) – Too many times they had confessed themselves in the darkness, leaving it there, never to speak of it again.  But this is different.  This love deserves the light of day.

Five Times They Kissed for a Case, and One Time They Kissed for Real by fleetwood_mouse (M, 32,406 w. || 5+1, Slow Burn, Fluff / Angst, Mutual Pining, Friends to Lovers) – A stolen ring! An artful blogger! And many more adventures for your enjoyment.

A Study In Auto-Signatures, Sniper Dolphins, and Sex Holidays by cwb (E, 32,690 w. || Case Fic, Post S3, Evil Mary, Dev. Rel., Honeymoon, Epistolary, Bottomlock, First Kiss / Time, Fluff, Secret Agents, BAMF!John) – John and Mary go on their sex holiday, and Sherlock is grumpy and pining about it. Part 1 of HOT DOLPHIN SEX

Chaperones by MissDavis (T, 34,114 w. || 11 Years Post-S4, Fake Relationship, Parentlock, Disney World, Bed / Room Sharing, Friends to Lovers, Fluff, First Kiss, Obsessive Sherlock, Insecure John) – Right. Of course. Everyone assumed they were a couple and no one would question it. John put his elbows up on the table so he could rest his head in his hands. “You want to pretend to be a couple so we can chaperone a trip to Disney World with Rosie’s class and you won’t have to share a room with a stranger?” “Exactly.” Sherlock beamed at him. “Don’t worry about the cost. The Birmingham case last month paid more than enough to cover expenses for all three of us.”

That Partitioning of the Things of Youth by wearitcounts (E, 35,353 w. || Humour and Angst, Post-TRF, Fake Relationship, UST / RST, Friends to Lovers, Jealous John) – Victor Trevor is in town, and nobody’s happy.

Classified(s) by blueink3 (E, 36,153 w. || Wedding Date AU || Fake Relationship, Jealous, PIning, H/C, Idiots in Love, Happy Ending, Mary is not Nice, Escort Service) – Clara’s American father is the ambassador to some such territory that Great Britain probably used to own, but she (and Harry’s undying love for her) is the reason John is getting on a flight at 12:30pm, flying across the second largest ocean in the world, and pretending to be in a perfectly happy, healthy relationship with an undoubtedly perfectly coiffed stranger. See, Clara is not only American (and wealthy to boot), she’s also best friends with John’s ex-fiancée. Whom she’s placed in the wedding party. As Maid of Honor. And John just happens to be Best Man. Bloody brilliant.

The Curious Adventure of the Drs. Watson by ShinySherlock (M, 40,883 w. || BBC & ACD Fusion || Victorianlock, Time Travel / Magical Realism, Friends to Lovers, Love and Kissing, Romance, Body Swap) – What if ACD Watson and BBC Watson switched places…  “Imposter!” Hands clenching the lapels of John’s coat, Holmes shoved him anew. “Yes!” John agreed, nodding, and then grimacing. “Sort of!”

Bloody But Unbowed by BeautifulFiction (E, 43,211 w. || Abduction, John Whump, Mild Torture, Background Case Fic, Friends to Lovers, Post-TRF / S3 Rewrite, Hurt/Comfort) – When a familiar argument threatens to destroy the last remnants of John and Sherlock’s failing friendship, both men are left questioning their worth to one another. Before either of them has the chance to make amends, circumstance intervenes. John is left at the mercy of his abductors, and this time, he’s not sure Sherlock will bother coming to his rescue.

The Case of the Vanishing Pants by SwissMiss (E, 44,025 w. || Five and Ones, Post-TRF, Case Fic, UST, Homophobia, Friends to Lovers) – Five times John and Sherlock lost their pants in the course of a case.

Bedroom Tales by Junejuly15 (M, 49,950 w. || Friends to Lovers, Through the Years, H/C, Military Kink, First Kiss / Time, Romance, Insecure Sherlock, Voyeurism, Post-TRF, Ficlets, Fluff and Angst, Fix-It Fics) – Bedroom Tales is a collection of John and Sherlock ficlets. They are set at various stages of their relationship and are in no particular order. Some are fluffy, some sexy, some angsty, there is hurt and comfort, romance and love. What unites them is that they all play in a bedroom, but not necessarily the one in 221B.

In the Dark Hours by hubblegleeflower (E, 51,639 w. || Friends to Lovers, Unreliable Narrator, Closeted Bi John, Angst, Miscommunications, Slow Burn, First Time, John’s Blog / Epistolary) – John, wounded and silent, drifts back to Baker Street for healing…and then goes home again. He visits, gets more upbeat, chattier, smiles, jokes… and still goes home again. Sherlock wants him to move back in - it just makes sense - but John shows no signs of doing so. This is the story of how John and Sherlock learn to say what needs to be said when they’re both so very, very rubbish at talking.

Lost Without My Blogger by starrysummernights (E, 52,155 w. || Rev. Reich, PTSD, Hurt / Comfort, Fluff / Angst, Psychological Torture, Reunion Fic, Friends to Lovers) – John is abducted and declared dead. How will Sherlock cope without his blogger? How will he react when John comes back from the “dead?” Drama and angst with a healthy dose of romance. Part 1 of I’d Be Lost Without My Blogger

Wars We Fought, Things We’re Not by blueink3 (M, 55,204 w. || Parentlock, Fluff & Angst, Kidnapping, Whump, Post-TAB, UST, Slow Burn, Couple for a Case) –  Five months after John’s world has fallen apart, Mycroft sends the consulting detective and his doctor on a case that neither is prepared for.

31_Days_of_Porn_Challenge_2017 Series by distantstarlight (E, 96,540 w. across 31 stories || Prompt Ficlets, Assorted Kinks, PWP) – A collection in response to the 31 Days of Porn Challenge issued by AtlinMerrik! Thanks for doing that because this has been buttload of fun (that joke never gets old). All stories will be brief stand-alone one-shots.

The Wedding Garments by cwb (E, 105,390 w. || Alternate Future AU || , Alternate First Meeting, Dating / Arranged Marriages, Romance, First Kiss/Time, Heavy Petting, Cuddles, POV Sherlock, Virgin Sherlock, Idiots in Love, Slow Burn / Falling in Love / Dev. Rel., Nervous/Anxious Sherlock, Jealous/Cranky, Hiking, Vacation Homes / Honeymoon, Sherlock’s Family, Horny John/Sherlock, Patient John, Massages, Hand Jobs, Assassination Plots, Hand Jobs / Oral Sex) – This is the story of a young consulting detective who wants nothing to do with marriage and an army doctor who wants to find true love. It’s 2020 post-Brexit England and the British government is encouraging arranged marriages. Candidates meet through state-run agencies and date in hopes of finding love (and tax benefits). Sherlock doesn’t need or want a spouse, at least not until John Watson shows up. Hesitant to give in to his more carnal urges because of the way they derail his mind, how will Sherlock progress toward the more intimate aspects of a relationship? The answer lies in a very special wedding gift.

A Study in Winning by Jupiter_Ash (E, 106,658 w. || Tennis AU || John POV, Dirty Talk, Mutual Pining, Misunderstandings, Happy Ending, Sherlock Speaks French, Switchlock, Wimbledon) – John and Sherlock are professional tennis players and it’s Wimbledon. One is a broken almost was at the end of his career, the other an arrogant rising star tipped for greatness. It should have been a straightforward tournament. It really should have been. How were they to know that a chance encounter would change everything? Part 1 of Tennis

between each beat are words unsaid by darcylindbergh, hudders-and-hiddles (T, 107,998 w. || Epistolary, Slow Burn, Friends to Lovers, Angst, Happy Ending) – On their wedding night, John and Sherlock gift each other with the things they each said when the other could not hear, the things they each put down where the other could not see: a collection of writings that illustrate the way their love for one another has grown over the years. Part 1 of between each beat

Midnight Blue Serenity by BeautifulFiction (E, 151,907 w. || Friends to Lovers, Gay Bar / For a Case, Drugs, Pining, Case Fic, UST) – When Sherlock infiltrates a club in order to track down a serial killer, his altered appearance is enough to make John question his assumption that Sherlock is beyond his reach. However, is he the only one who appreciates his flatmate’s charms, or is Sherlock at risk of becoming the next victim?

A Fold in the Universe by darkest_bird (E, 152,869 w. || Omegaverse / Prime Universe Crossover || OmegaJohn / AlphaSherlock, First Kiss / Time, Friends to Lovers, Established Relationship, Angst, H/C, Dub Con, Humour) – Alpha Sherlock and Omega John are in a relationship. Prime Sherlock and Prime John are not. So what happens when a freak fold in the universe switches one John for the other?

Mise en Place by azriona (M, 161,004 w. || Restaurant (Kitchen Nightmares) AU || Sherlock is Gordon Ramsay / Celebrity Sherlock, Restauranteur John, Harry Plays Prominent Role, Alternating POV, Mutual Pining, Cranky Sherlock, Bed Sharing, Slow Burn) – John Watson had no intentions of taking over the family business, but when he returns from Afghanistan, battered and bruised, and discovers that his sister Harry has run their restaurant into the ground, he doesn’t have much choice. There’s only one thing that can save the Empire from closing for good – the celebrity star of the BBC series Restaurant Reconstructed, Chef Sherlock Holmes. Part 1 of Mise en Place

The Gilded Cage by BeautifulFiction (E, 326,887 w. || Omegaverse || Omega Sherlock / Alpha John, Friends to Lovers, Dub Con, Reproductive Rights) – In a world where Omegas are the property of the elite Alphas, locked away and treasured by those wealthy enough to buy them, John never questioned his flatmate’s secondary gender. Sherlock Holmes was an Alpha through-and through. Wasn’t he? A chance discovery turns the world on its head, and John is left grappling to come to terms with Sherlock’s past as events conspire to threaten their future.