#got quite a few words from nanowrimo for it but it needs more work
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since feeling is first who pays any attention
Summary: Ginny has done her fair share of watching Harry over the years.
AO3 | FF.net
Note: This was originally a gift for the wonderful @remedialpotions for the 2020 Harry & Ginny Discord's Incognito Elf gift exchange that I always wanted to rework before posting! I decided to expand it and add more missed moments, one for each of Ginny's years at Hogwarts.
Special thank you to @takearisk-ao3 who not only beta'ed last minute but also created the above beautiful banner when she had no idea what this story was about aside from my poor vibe descriptions! And, hah, it's my birthday again, so why not post today?
since feeling is first
who pays any attention
to the syntax of things
will never wholly kiss you;
wholly to be a fool
while Spring is in the world
my blood approves
and kisses are a better fate
than wisdom
lady i swear by all flowers. Don't cry
—the best gesture of my brain is less than
your eyelids' flutter which says
we are for each other: then
laugh, leaning back in my arms
for life's not a paragraph
and death i think is no parenthesis
— e. e. cummings
i.
Ginny presses her face against the wall, peeking between the stair spindles. Her eye lands on the two boys hunched over a chessboard. It’s her brother Ron and Harry Potter, who, despite appearing to be losing, doesn’t seem the least bit upset.
Harry Potter.
The Harry Potter is in her house. Looking comfortable on their couch despite the faded, mended cushions. His face crinkles in laughter at something Ron says, his green eyes bright with contentment. Ginny doesn’t miss the occasional look of awe at the things she has always taken for granted. It’s almost as if he can’t believe he is really here in their ordinary home.
He isn’t what she expected—isn’t what she imagined he would look like after all those years listening to Mum recite her favorite bedside story, about the heroic Savior of the Wizarding World. She had pictured neat hair, a dashing smile, someone who would recognize a comrade in her and take her on all sorts of adventures. He would be different. He wouldn’t discount her dreams of flying or of doing everything her brothers could and more. Instead, Harry Potter has the messiest hair ever, a sheepish smile, and clothes that he nearly swims in.
Oh, and he has somehow missed the memo and found a comrade in Ron instead.
Her fingers curl around the spindle. Not for the first time, a spike of envy shoots through her. If only she were a little older. Or a boy. Then maybe she would be the one playing chess with Harry. Maybe she would be the one to hide under his invisibility cloak and battle trolls and face You-Know-Who with him.
Ginny presses her face a little closer and lets out a sigh.
But Harry Potter is kind. He ignores all the times she has made a fool of herself. And he has the greenest eyes she’s ever seen. They are as green as those glowing jars of pickled toads at the apothecary Mum sometimes takes her to. Pretty and kind and not at all dismissive of her patched clothes or her glowing red face.
Harry Potter. If he likes Ron, if he actually likes the Burrow, if his face grimaces at the attention at Flourish and Blotts, could it be possible that one day he could like her too?
“Going to ask for his autograph, Ginny?”
Ginny lets out an uncharacteristic squeak as Fred sidles up against her, with George flanking her other side.
“Or are you going to yell at us about how the great Harry Potter is different?” George teases.
“Not just brave—”
“But humble too!”
“What a catch.” Fred pretends to swoon.
“If only he’d notice me, Fred.” George sighs dramatically.
Ginny glowers at them, shoving away from her hiding spot. “Stop it.”
“Or what?” Fred and George laugh, loudly enough that Ron and Harry glance over curiously. Already she can feel her face flame even as her eyes narrow.
“Or I’ll tell Mum about that powder you snuck into your rooms.”
She turns her heel just in time to see her brothers’ faces drain of color. With as much dignity she can muster, she storms back up the stairs. She immediately collapses on her bed, but the soft afghan does nothing to ease the embarrassment that burns behind her eyes.
The worst part is that there’s no one for her to talk to about how seeing Harry Potter—or him looking at her—sets off a blazing sensation somewhere in her chest that horrifically travels up to her face like a rash. It’s foreign and strange, nothing she’s ever experienced before.
She has no one to talk to about it. Ron has hardly spared her a second glance since Harry arrived. Fred and George tease her mercilessly. Percy, preoccupied with his shiny badge, just tells her she should focus on her studies so she can be a prefect like him one day. And there is no way Percy or Mum would let her borrow an owl to send a letter to Bill or Charlie.
Maybe some things are best kept secret. She’s used to taking matters in her own hands, picking locks the Muggle way after watching Fred and George do it. The hum of power under her fingers when she steals their brooms reminds her that age, gender, and size don’t define her. She’d rather they stop being berks and let her fly with them, but she has grown to love the uninhibited freedom of flying at night. And it’s made a touch sweeter by the thrill of something being just hers in a house and family where everything is shared.
Still. It would be nice to have someone to talk to, someone to confide in.
She’s brimming with foreign feelings, the bursting anticipation of finally, finally going to Hogwarts. It’s all she’s ever wanted since Bill went, so much that she snuck into his luggage, craving escapades and escape. All these feelings are strangely accentuated by Harry Potter in her home.
She lets out a sigh, finally unburying her flushed face. Her gaze falls on her cauldron, filled with the fanciest, most expensive, brand new books that Harry Potter had gifted her (her, not Ron, not anyone else). The thought makes her insides flutter.
Maybe if she studies hard, Harry Potter might see that she’s not too little and annoying. Maybe he will tell Ron to let her stay, let her join them.
Ginny is pulling out Year with the Yeti when a small black notebook slips onto the floor. She stares down at it for a moment, temporarily dazed. Had Dad bought this for her?
The little journal is faded but retains a simple prettiness, almost as if there’s more to it than its worn cover. Something about it seems to draw her in. Mum always says never judge a book by its cover.
She leans down to pick it up, and a small thrill shoots up her arm. Her fingers skim over the clean, crisp pages.
She hardly ever gets anything of her own.
So unaccustomed to being without someone her age, she’d taken to chronicling stories, events, and adventures—placeholders for the real thing—as a way to cope without her brothers. Dad would peek into her room sometimes, his eyes twinkling when he caught her writing. He must have known she’d want to remember every moment of her first year at Hogwarts. Ginny presses the book against her chest, falling back onto her bed.
How much of it will be filled with the Boy Who Lived?
#since feeling is first who pays any attention#ginny weasley#harry potter#missed moments#canon compliant#hinny#eventually#pining#i have seven chapters planned and 2 more fully drafted so expect updates sooner rather than later i hope!#also still working on unravel me#don't worry!#got quite a few words from nanowrimo for it but it needs more work#thank you everyone for all the birthday wishes already#i feel very loved#this is my gift to all of you#ginny weasley grows up one missed moment at a time
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10 Ways to Turn Revision Into an Adventure
For some of us, revision may be your next big challenge during Camp. Sounds a little intimidating, doesn’t it? Well, have no fear! NaNo participant Madison Vaughn-Parra is here to make revision fun!
So… you’ve got yourself a first draft. Perhaps it’s years worth of work, or perhaps it was the product of the frenzied rush that is National Novel Writing Month. Either way, you’ve deemed it a complete work, which means only one thing: it’s ready for revision.
Did you picture lightning striking on a dark and stormy night when reading the big “R” word? If so, you’re not alone! For many, revision is even more intimidating than dreaming up a novel from scratch. If writing a first draft was an adventure of epic proportions, then revising that same draft is a slog through already-explored terrain, right?
Wrong! I’ve found that revision can be just as grand of an adventure as writing 50K in 30 days! To prove it, I’d like to share ten ways you can turn your revision journey from a dreaded duty into an exciting adventure:
1. First things first: make a copy of your first draft, and then don’t touch the original! You don’t want your adventure bogged down by regrets, after all, and having an untouched first draft will ensure that if you’re unhappy with any changes, you’ll always have the original to fall back on.
2. Be prepared! Just as you wouldn’t want to forget your socks and undies, you’re going to want to pack everything you need to help you on your revision adventure. NaNoWriMo’s “Now What?” revision guide should come in handy, for starters!
3. Take a trip off the beaten path and explore all of the “What If’s”, no matter how wild they might seem. What if you added to the chemistry of your main characters and turned your action-adventure novel into a full-blown romance? What if the murder mystery mastermind was the other guy? The possibilities are endless!
4. Go on a hunt to find the most hilarious typos born from the fever-induced ramblings of the NaNo mind, and share them with your writing group for laughs!
5. Make it a game! For example, does your novel have a character who keeps disappearing from scenes they’re supposed to be in? (Mine was a tiny dragon named Mouse…) Every time you write that character back into a scene, reward yourself with a treat for “finding” them!
6. Gleefully chop away at tangents, plot twists, and descriptions you included in your first draft simply for word count. No one can stop you from backspacing now!
7. Try new tools! Is there any better feeling than using a brand new travel accessory for the first time? That’s how I felt when I first tried Scrivener’s split-screen feature and discovered just how fun it made revision. Why not check out NaNoWriMo’s offers page to see if any new tools spark your excitement?
8. Delight in discovering passages that you have absolutely no memory of writing! If you’re anything like me, there will be quite a few of them, and you’ll find you can improve them with the ease of editing someone else’s writing.
9. Capture your favorites! Create a “Snapshots” document or folder and fill it with all the first draft passages that you got right the first time. If you start feeling discouraged during revising, simply pull up these snapshots and remind yourself of your own genius!
10. If you really want to capture the NaNo spirit, try rewriting your novel from start to finish without even glancing at your first draft. This trick terrifies me, personally, but I know folks who swear by it!
Congratulations! You’re now ready for your revision adventure! Pack up your bags, be kind to yourself, and have fun exploring your novel again. I’ll be right there with you!
Madison Vaughn-Parra is a lifelong writer and passionate geek, who technically works a corporate job in program management but prefers to spend her time in fantasy and science-fiction worlds of her own creation. She’s happily lost in the woods of her own revision adventure at the moment and hoping to dive into the publishing process next. She rarely posts on Twitter, but you can still follow her @vaughn__boyage if you’d like!
Header Photo by Leah Kelley from Pexels
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NaNoWriMo Midway Progress
So I've accidentally entered a drought era due to the Sisyphean task of keeping up with NaNoWriMo. I wanted to thank everyone here for the support they've shown me (but I got bowled over by November)! This is my first time participating in the challenge and the thought of people who want to read my work motivated me considerably. Since we're over halfway through, I thought it would be good to write down some insights.
At this point, I've been writing, but I can't even say my attempts have been wholly successful; I am still not caught up with the daily word count (which I have been failing from Day 1). The story is... progressing, at the very least; I think we're a quarter of the way in. If the story pans out fully, it will probably be 80-100k-ish.
I've learned quite a bit about my writing over the past few days. I really don't fit the style that NaNo requires of writers, which is "quantity-over-quality-becomes-quality, so just knuckle down and write and edit later". My approach is more like "find the precise words for each sentence and fine tune it even more when editing", which takes excrutiatingly long. Having tried out NaNo-style writing, I already know I need extensive edits for the first few scenes (mostly because Ney made so big of a mess). Style constraints also aren't helping—I need to practice writing in past tense a lot more.
Speaking of writing on your feet, I have learned that I absolutely cannot pantse things. If there is no plan, it takes infinitely longer for me to finish a scene, which affects the pace at which I achieve the word count. Historical stories that mess with timelines absolutely need more than... the week of planning that I did, lmao. One way I kind of got around this was literally word-vomiting chapter outlines in advance to rack up my word count in the first week. I also tried to rewrite scenes and include them into the word count, but found out that slowed my momentum.
If I write over 2k a day starting from now, I should still get to the 50k word count by the end of the month. I worry that I won't be spending enough time immersing myself in different scenes because the story timeline will be moving much more quickly the further I get into it. Maybe I can solve this by following the main thread of the plot (the Ney and Soult Show) and leaving bits that involve other characters I haven't researched later.
Feel free to drop me a line or ask questions about the project if you want to. Until next time!
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2023 Writer Year-In-Review
Hi, I’m RaisedonRadio & FortressofmyPast on AO3 and FF.net. This is an on-going tradition since 2015. Check out my past year-end posts: 2022, 2021, 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015.
Tagging a few, but if you come across this, consider it an open tag! You’re welcome to tag me back, I’d love to read it!
@writercorianarose
@shesailsships @talesofsorrowandofruin @azdesertwillow @goneahead @littlemissfandomworld @dreams-of-kalopsia @halleyuhm
Big change for me compared to last year—in addition to NaNoWriMo, I actually posted fanfics! I tried to add some new questions to this year’s edition, I hope they might even move out of my tiny circle.
Total Word Counts:
51,920 for 2023 NaNoWriMo
15,570 on 2022 NaNoWriMo project
19,193 for July 2023 Camp NaNoWriMo (mostly fanfics)
28,310 in published fanfics (this number is overlapping with camp nano, I wasn’t paying attention, so I’m not going to add everything together)
Total Number Of Completed Works: 10
Total Number of WIPS worked on this year: 10 or so
How Many WIPs do you still have: 23
Looking back, did you write more than you thought you would this year, less, or about what you’d expected?
I wrote way more than expected! I seriously didn’t think I would do NaNoWriMo again. And I published ten fics! That’s ten more than last year!
Did you take any writing risks this year?
The NaNoWriMo project was definitely a risk for me. I basically had an idea and no outline. It was quite a challenge to my perfectionism issues—I had to basically never reread anything and just keep going, fully aware that I can better foreshadow the ideas that came up halfway through in the next rewrite.
Biggest Surprise:
I wrote for NaNoWriMo again, which I was pretty sure wouldn't happen lol, and hit the word count, all through discovery writing, and having very little idea where I was going with it.
Biggest Disappointment:
I dropped that above mentioned project the moment November ended! I can tell it has potential, hidden in there. I will definitely return to it.
Do you have any writing goals for the new year?
I’d love to at least finish the first draft of the 2023 NaNoWriMo project, bringing it to a tentative end so I can actually reread it and go from there. And keep writing fanfic, and maybe even work on the 2022 nanowrimo project…
Fanfiction Questions Below! (if you don’t write fanfiction feel free to skip or rework the questions for your original works.)
Fandoms I’ve written in this year:
I wrote fics for 7 different fandoms! For the following kdramas: Island, Tale of the Nine Tailed, Memorist, Royal Secret Agent, W: Two Worlds, May I Help You?, and a little Korean Web drama called Handmade Love.
Your most popular story of the year?
That would be Besides You with 327 hits and 47 kudos. However Superhero got the most comment interaction with 4!
The story that was easiest/or most fun to write:
I Think He Knows was fun to write! I do just love brooding with a heart of gold formerly immortal male leads.
Hardest story to write:
Rescue Me, Superhero, Restore, and Prayers & Promises were four works that I had left for dead, and came back and found them to be basically finished and just needed proofreading. (So just in case anyone wondered how I turned out three of those in like two days: they were actually done and I was hellbent on getting them out of my WIPs list)
Your sweetest story:
That would definitely be Superhero. I altered my normal narrative style to better fit the child’s character, and I was really pleased with how it turned out.
Your saddest scene:
I feel like I hit a lot of angst this year, but nothing really sad?
The sexiest moment you’ve written this year?
*coughs* I wrote five pieces of smut. (Half of my fanfics were smut this year?!) Umm, I’m torn between Beside You and Don’t Blame Me? But also Never Be the Same and Take On Me???
Your favorite tag: (whether you use it the most or just something witty/perfect for the story)
My brother announced to me that he reads all my tags (he was trying to embarrass me about one of my smut pieces) so I did a shout out to him in the next fic. He saw it within the day, I was actually impressed.
Most unintentionally telling story: (have you accidentally or purposefully exposed a detail about yourself?)
Religious guilt seems to be a reoccurring tag this year. In all seriousness, not quite sure why, but yet it kinda makes sense? (its complicated lmao) And for some reason not one, but two fics ended with marriage proposals?! (I’m so single.)
Are any of your fics named after/heavily inspired by music?
I’m RaisedonRadio and it would be concerning if—checks list—less than 8 of the 10 fics weren’t named after songs, haha! (I’m actually just really bad at naming fics…)
Good To You and Besides You are both songs by the band Marianas Trench, and are heavily inspired by the songs. Rescue Me is by OneRepublic, one of those more vibes than lyrics inspired. I Think He Knows by Taylor Swift was definitely on repeat for that fic, as well as Don't Blame Me. (Poems), Prayers, and Promises was more a steal the name of the song by John Denver, for some reason I think Cold by Corbyn was on repeat when writing that one. Take On Me was named more for the similarities between the MV and the series! Never Be The Same was for the vibes of the song by Camila Cabello but not really the lyrics.
What’s your own favorite story of the year?
Maybe it’s cheating but I’m not sure if I can really choose? I know it’s not a common writer sentiment but I really do like them all for different reasons.
Like I churned out Good To You and Besides You within ten days of each other in July, after not writing any fanfic basically for a year and a half.
And then I pulled Rescue Me out of the dead drafts pile and made myself work on more description.
I Think He Knows was my first foray into a brand new fandom.
Don’t Blame Me is one of my rare canon divergence fics.
Restore was another dead draft that I found to be mostly complete, and decide to release into the world even if I knew there was so much more I could have done with it.
Prayers and Promises was not only another new fandom, but for some reason, I decided to write for a side character. It’s still sitting on just 1 hit and that makes it all the better that I really wrote it for myself.
Superhero was out of my comfort zone of writing for a kid’s perspective and I was so happy with how it turned out.
Take On Me was a draft sitting at less than 1k words and I challenged myself to finish it before the new year, and got it done in two days.
And then, to finish it all off with the intense desire to have ten fics under the belt for 2023, I wrote Never Be The Same in less than two days for the last drama I had watched, and the speed that the last two fics were actually finished was a huge change for me.
Fanfiction risks you took this year?
I wrote fanfic for not one, but two fandoms that I had to create the first tags for on AO3! Also, as I started to slip into just writing for kdramas this year, I’ve basically become my own proofreader and editor at this point. Any mistakes are my own, lol.
My favorite part of fandom this year:
That would be getting two kudos and a comment on I Think He Knows, one of the fics that is the first in its fandom tag. To actually connect with more fans of such a tiny project was so cool!
Thanks for reading and here’s to next year!
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Writing Stats - Quarter 1, 2024
I've always wanted to track how much I write every day. It's my favorite thing about Nanowrimo and Camp Nano is the tracking and seeing my progress in numbers rather than pages. Last December, @sparkstar-trash and I decided to do a mini Nano between the two of us from December 11th to January 14th. It was kind of a success, kind of a fail on both ends, but it did spark (no pun intended) a love for this spreadsheet I had made.
All that to say, I've been keeping track of my writing stats this year and decided that I would do updates every three months (mostly for myself so it doesn't overwhelm me in the end) to see how things change.
Below the cut, you can see everything and how I kept track of things!
I'm participating/participated in quite a few events this year so far. This first quarter, I've been working on: Steddie Love Month, Stobin Month, Steddie Omegaverse Valentine's Day Exchange, Stranger Things Reverse Big Bang, and Stranger Things Big Bang.
I also decided to embark on a 90 Day Posting Challenge to help encourage me to write daily and to make shorter pieces. It's been really fun so far and helped me accept that not everything needs to be perfect to be fun and post. Posting started February 1st, so I'm on day 61 of the challenge today!
January
Word Count Total for Month: 43,726
Average Words Per Day: 1,286
Average Words Per Week: 8,745
Highest Word Count in One Day: 6,377
Total Fics Worked On: 22
Fics Completed: 17
Days Written: 23/31 or 74.19%
February
Word Count Total for Month: 43,819
Average Words Per Day: 1,288
Average Words Per Week: 8,763
Highest Word Count in One Day: 4,775
Total Fics Worked On: 29
Fics Completed: 24
Days Written: 29 or 100%
March
Word Count Total for Month: 39,405
Average Words Per Day: 1,158
Average Words Per Week: 7,881
Highest Word Count in One Day: 4,464
Total Fics Worked On: 35
Fics Completed: 32
Days Written: 31 or 100%
Quarter Total
Word Count Total for Quarter: 126,950
Average Words Per Day: 1,244
Average Words Per Week: 8,463
Total Fics Worked On: 78
Fics Completed: 74
Days Written: 83 or 91% from the last three months, 22% for year
Longest Writing Streak: 64
Total in Writing Streak: 95,484
Thoughts:
Keeping track of my stats really motivated me to keep writing every day, even when I didn't want to. The monthly prompts and 90 Day challenge have gotten me into a really good habit of writing every day, no matter what, with smaller goals like the prompts being great starters for the fics I'm working on.
March was really tough and I lost a lot of writing time, so I'm pretty impressed I got as much as I did. Things have changed drastically in my life since I started this, which is so weird after three years of consistency, so trying to find this new balance is, well, a challenge. If it wasn't for @lady-lostmind and the Stobin Month prompts, I don't think I would have stuck with writing through my bad days like I did. And for full transparency, there are a few days where I wrote under 10 words that day, but they're still 10 more than I had and I sat down and tried to write. The intention was there, so it counts.
Either way, I'm really proud of myself for getting to this point, I have so many fics I'm working on or have planned and I hope the next quarter is as fulfilling as this last one has been.
Thanks to all of you who have read, liked, reblogged, kudos, commented, bookmarked, and rec'd my work. From vocal to silent readers, you've all cheerleaded me into where I am now and I'm really thankful to be in this position.
Now off to more sprints to see if I can't beat these numbers for the next quarter.
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Behind the Keyboard: Volume 3
Behind the Keyboard is a series of interviews with different Schitt’s Creek fanfic authors. The series will last as long as there is interest (from authors) and capacity (from me). If you are an author from the Schitt’s Creek fandom who would like to participate, send a DM to this account.
Each author was given ten questions. The first five questions are the same for every author, the last five will vary.
Remember, this year’s Reading Challenge begins July 15, so polish up those MFL lists.
Let’s meet our next author:
Sspaz1000 / @sspaz1000
How many fics have you written?
For Schitt’s Creek only 6, but a few other fandoms have quite a bit more, and a bunch never put onto Ao3 yet (slowly working my stuff over from the days of LJ, lol)
When did you publish your first fic on AO3?
November 12th, 2020
Describe your writing process from “Oh, I have an idea” to pushing publish on AO3
I write notes down, anywhere, and then I probably let it sit for way way too long, and then sometimes I just start writing and see what happens. Hopefully I finish something. Then I freak out for a bit, ask a friend to Beta, and edit and freak out some more. Then post.
Tell me about your most recent fic? What do you love about it? Is there anything you think you could have done better?
Last Schitt’s Creek fic was titled I will help you out, if you let me. Yes a total play on Noah song lyrics. I think I love the title, and I liked that I got into each of their head’s during friends and family episode. What could I have done better? Not use so much dialogue from the show in a short piece? But I kind of had to go along with it. I’m torn on this one.
What advice would you give to someone who’s thinking about publishing their fic for the first time?
Just do it, and don’t give a f*** what people say. Get out of your head and do it. Take Dan’s advice and follow through. Because if you follow through guess what you have a finished product.
What’s one thing that you’d like to say to your favorite Schitt’s Creek character?
David Rose, you are well loved and have a lot of love to give. Let it all out and enjoy your husband.
The beginning, middle or end of a fic. Which do you like the most? Which is the worst?
In writing? I like the beginning, because that’s generally where my ideas are beginnings of somethings. Then actually making the words to fill out the rest of it is tough. And titles making titles is the worst.
Are you interested in writing original fiction?
Yes, you can see on my Ao3 page I’ve posted some old school originals from 2009. I’ve done NaNoWriMo since 2007, only made the 50k words one time in 2012. But I’ve written something every year for it. Most times it’s a combo of fanfic and original. Try to see which idea gives me more motivation or steam. Do I have an outline of a m/m romance story that has been outlined for a decade? Yes. Will I ever start writing it? Someone kick my butt into doing the scary thing.
When did you start writing?
Umm I don’t remember, but I kind of always liked writing, though being told in college I wasn’t good at journalism and stuff took some fun out of it. Fanfic I started writing most likely 2009 with Torchwood fanfic. Though I feel like I wrote stuff for Scrubs (Patrick Drake/Robin Scorpio Drake) on General Hospital before that. (I’m not sure if any of that exists anywhere if I did but definitely they were my first ship)
Schitt’s Creek got me back into writing.
Outlines - yes or no?
As defined by NaNoWriMo, I’m a Plantser. Someone who plans and doesn’t plan at the same time. Like I kind of like having a it starts here, needs to go here, and this is how I want it to end, but I find if I do too much more than that, I get really detailed, and I don’t write anything except detailed outlines of stuff.
#behind the keyboard#meet the authors#sc fic reading challenge#sc reading challenge#sc fanfic#schitt's creek#schitts creek
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Works in Progress (June 2022)
Unsurprisingly, I still have a metric ton of WIPs. Maybe even more than in my last update, which was in April.
After checking, the number is actually the same, if you disregard One-Man-Force, which is currently in beta reading as it's being posted. The Switchcraft fic I mentioned last time is drafted and waiting for me to be interested enough to edit it, and the three Witcher fics are still approximately the same without much progress.
I have, however, started yet another fic since then. About a week ago, I was on discord with two of my writer friends, and we came up with this idea to have monthly title prompts. On our server, we have a bot that can be made to give title ideas, and each month now, we generate ten, pick two, and assign one of those two to each of our friends depending on which idea we'd like to see them turn into a story. This way, each of us has two titles to pick from at the beginning of the month, and based on what ideas are sparked by the one we choose, we write a story.
We've set a minimum word count of 500 words, but with my trusty too-much-gene, my story has already reached over 2500 words. So far I've written the very end and the very beginning of the fic, and now I'm going to have to fill it in. I've got a pretty good idea of events, so it's mostly a question of actually sitting down to write it. I'm quite excited about this fic (it's Witcher, that's all I'll say for now), and I'm hoping to finish the first draft in time for July's Camp NaNoWriMo.
For Camp NaNo I think I'll work on that one Geralt/Roche fic I have been wanting to continue for the past few months but have always let shorter ideas take precedent over. Along with that, because I need multiple projects if I'm going to be writing every day, I'll work on next month's title challenge. I think most of those monthly things are going to be original stories with a few fics strewn in between if the shoe fits, but regardless of that I'll post them on my Ao3. Maybe I'll just have one continuous fic where each chapter is a story, just so they won't clog my feed.
Lots to think about and write, but I'm excited.
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Nanowrimo Experience
This year I tried Nanowrimo…
As a total rebel lmao. I thought about trying to get through Book 2 and brought it up to my writing group to be met with a unanimous and resounding “FINISH BOOK 1!”
Well, I could try to argue with that, but naaaah…
So I aimed to edit more or less an hour or two a day instead, though ngl some days I more or less just used writing word count because I had to make scenes from scratch due to playing the Cupid shuffle with mu plot structure until it resembled something good.
Most notably, well, I had a scene from near the end that I really liked. Problem was, at this point that scene was a relic of sorts, no longer serving much purpose. So I looked at the parts I liked about it: a cool sea monster fight/introduction, and getting to show off Gayle (my amnesiac water magic user) being a fucking nerd… and maybe a few more things I can’t tell y’all because spoilers >:3c
So I was like, “hey, showing Gayle having an interest in books and history is good character set up actually” and moved that scene earlier, and while I had to change the context, I still got my sea monster fight later, just in a different place. Ngl not as fond of the new one, but maybe that’s nostalgia. I’d clung to the prior scene through quite a few drafts.
Of course, that meant I had to change parts of the beginning/middle of the book to accommodate, but that was honestly easier than expected. The harder part was basically rewriting, like… uh. Not exactly the last parts of the book, but a majority of the lead up and plot twists.
Also…
Guess who found out em-dashes DON’T have space on each side lskhcjlajdlal
Yeah I was doing them:
Like — this
When they should’ve been:
Like—this
That was a loooooot of cleanup ^^’ in retrospect, I maybe could’ve left it. I’m sure some people might’ve said it was artificial padding, but honestly I just thought they worked that way for some reason??? This thing got longer than expected anyways lol. Still on the shorter end for the average fantasy novel, but oh goodness many words.
But yeah. I am a lot happier with it now, though still a bit unsure about the ending. My previous editor(s) didn’t seem to like it much, but, well…
I’mma risk sounding pretentious but hold with me lol.
I don’t think they understood it.
Like, I really don’t. Long story short, well, it might’ve been a genre mis-match. I didn’t realize at the time, but the pair I had editing it don’t actually work in fantasy most of the time, and seemed to have problems with, y’know… magic showing up.
At the time I thought it was a me thing, but my beta readers who do like fantasy are picking up on things they never seemed satisfied with.
I won’t say they were awful. They did help me find some other relics/artifacts of previous drafts that I left scattered nonsensically all over the place, and do think they caught a few things that I had gotten so used to that I forgot to explain them—like character walking on roofs because the roofs are flat and connected and serve as makeshift pathways when storms and floods occur.
But yeah. Takeaways?
Iiiiiii need to plot better and also need to stop changing the plot midway through writing.
Em dashes work: like—this
Make sure your editors work in your genre
Kill darlings, but also if you really like something, figure out why and take those aspects and reuse them
And hey… gotta find a system that works for you. Not every day was equal. Some days I was chomping at the bit to put in the New Scenes, some days I basically just edited grammar, and some days I didn’t feel up to actually working on the manuscript (particularly the days I was feeling most critical of it and myself) but instead used that time to take a step back and figure out what I needed to work on next.
If you’ve read this, well, thank you. ^w^ I’m just rambling, feeling like a gramma on the porch with youngsters coming by aljxlalhdlaljs.
But hey, sometimes you just wanna talk
#Nanowrimo#nanorebel#voidsky#retrospective#writers on tumblr#author ramblings#that moment when you have to convince yourself that it’s okay to talk about things on social media#I am kinda awkward but trying to get better#don’t mind me just rambling
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Weekly Update
November 14 - 21, 2022: Driving down the road screaming at the top of my lungs.
Hey friends!! I am back! A day late but back nontheless. I hope you have all have a splendid week, I know that I for one have had a pretty good week. Got some world building done, worked a bit, had some fun in pre calc. Good times! Anyways, back to the weekly update. I have gotten some more development on Acherion's magic system. More to be said below...
ToTS Plans: I have gotten quite a bit of world building down, still finalizing Telling, which is the magic system of Acherion. It has two halves (not including the subtypes that stem from it), Lozhir and Veravda, Veravda is truth telling, while Lozhir is lying. Lozhir latches onto reality better and is permanent, but Veravda is temporary and causes an effect called an "Immolation" where reality forces itself to fix what has been changed. This is not fully complete yet, but users will need a certain material to use both Lozhir and Veravda. If they try to use their magic without that material however, the magic feeds off their memories, emotions, and thoughts. Until eventually all that's left to feed off of is the physical self. Morbid I know...
TCB Plans: Still dryer than the Sahara desert.. Few projects on the go, haven't continued writing them since the start of November. But I will get back into it after November ends. I am planning to set my daily goal to alot less than last month. Because before I felt like I had to force myself to write the 1,667 words each day. Instead, if I set my goal to maybe 250 words a day, I can get that done easily and will likely end up doing even more for fun.
Throw Away Plans: Same ol' same ol'. No progress to speak of. Plans are there. But no progress..
NaNoWriMo Plans: WOO. Ok. Currently there are. 88 different creatures in Acherion. 1 magic system with a few different subtypes and branches (there is a forging magic, as well as some people who can remember memories from those who have died, and a few others in the works). There are 12 different races, a few of which live underground, and some which have crystals for eyes and that can see outside the visible light spectrum (Still tryna figure out what that would look like, what do you guys think?).
That is all for this week my friends! Suggestions and ask box are open as always in case anyone wants to send some prompts or ask some questions about my magic system or world in general. Thanks for reading! Till next time!
Chears! - The Patron of Stories
#writing#worldbuilding#world building#weekly update#national novel writing month#nanowrimo#Patron of Stories#The Patron of Stories#PatronofStories#stories
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Hello, I recently read some of your work and I really really like your writing style! I’ve loved everything I’ve read so far and if it is not a burden to you and you are okay with doing so, I was hoping you could answer a few questions?
I was wondering if you had any formal writing education? Any advice for writing? Also wondered what kinds of books and authors you read, if you read?
I am sorry for all the questions, and if they’ve been asked before (I tried to find any answers you may have given to these or ones similar and I’m sorry if I missed them but direct me if need be).
I am also a writer and I’m always very curious about writers I look up to/ really like- most of them just happen to not be among the living so I do t really get to ask them any questions. Thank you for your time! It’s a pleasure to be able to read your writing!!
Thank you!
I am blushing extensively, thank you for all your kind words!
As for writing, I have had no formal education in it. I tried - and might not have dropped out of university if I'd succeeded - but creative writing required higher general scores than I got in school. I've read a lot of books on writing... like, a LOT... and always taken an interest in plot structure. I'm pretty sure I'm the only person who walked out of House Of Flying Daggers (I saw it in theatres, I'm that old) rhapsodizing about the way they visually represented traditional storytelling metaphors (ie 'a rain of spears').
I will note that while it seems that absolutely everyone recommends Stephen King's 'On Writing', I've never read it because a) I found the little bit I read wordy and self-indulgent, and b) the very mention of that man's name enrages me because my partner once got into a serious hyperfixation and we didn't have a single conversation in which King's name was not mentioned for OVER A YEAR. This is not King's fault, but the name still fills me with intense fury.
Books on writing I would recommend:
K. M. Weiland's 'Structuring Your Novel': I like her 'voice', and her chosen examples, and pacing longer stories is one of the things I have the most trouble with.
J. Michael Straczynski's 'Complete Book Of Scriptwriting': It's an old book now, but it's still one of the best I've ever read, and my long-standing favourite. There's a ton of fascinating history about the evolution of screenwriting, and a lot of very pithy advice that applies just as well to novels and short fiction as it does to movies and television.
Chris Baty's 'No Plot? No Problem!': I haven't reread this in quite a while, but I remember it as being really helpful as well as fun to read. I also recommend NaNoWriMo in general. I've been participating since 2002 - this year will be my twentieth anniversary of NaNo - and my writing has improved enormously in that time. Writing is like everything else, insofar as the more you practice, the better you get. I've hit 50K every year since the beginning, so even if I never got a novel I wanted to finish, polish, and put out there (and a couple of them are promising), that's still 950,000 words I've written.
Also? Fanfiction. Fanfiction is a GREAT way to practice the craft. Because the characters and universe are pre-built, you can focus on the writing itself, on things like examining nuances of character, identifying and using tropes, and building a compelling story. Between NaNo and fanfiction, over the last 24 years, I have written over 2,000,000 words, and you can't do ANYTHING two million times without getting better at it.
As for who I like to read, I can't recommend Diane Duane, Tamora Pierce, and Georgette Heyer too highly. Not only do they write good stories, they were/are very, very technically skilled. Reading their work is an education in itself. I also recommend consuming narratives from other cultures - I learned a lot about different narrative conventions from things like reading translated novels, myths, and fairy tales, reading manga, and watching Chinese and Korean movies and dramas. It really gives you a different perspective on the mechanics of storytelling, and shows you how many 'default' or 'obvious' plot tropes are actually really culturally specific. (I have consumed every re-telling, re-imagining, or re-translation of Journey To The West, including the old tv show AND the Hallmark movie. I really recommend this, as it is FASCINATING how many ways different people interpret the same story. The Korean 'Korean Odyssey' and Netflix's 'New Adventures Of Monkey' are my favourites)
Bonus reading: When Books Went To War, by Molly Guptil Manning. It's not about writing, but it's about why stories are important, the lifeline a novelist can throw to someone experiencing the darkest of times, and what I believe may have been publishing's finest hour. I cry every time I read it, and it makes me proud to count myself a writer. If you ever wonder why you're slogging away so hard at learning so fickle and difficult a craft, this book will remind you.
“The therapeutic effect of reading was not a new concept to the librarians running the VBC (Victory Book Campaign). In the editorial Warren published on the eve of commencing her tenure as director, she discussed how books could soothe pain, diminish boredom or loneliness, and take the mind on a vacation far from where the body was stationed. Whatever a man's need—a temporary escape, a comforting memory of home, balm for a broken spirit, or an infusion of courage—the librarians running the VBC were dedicated to ensuring that each man found a book to meet it.”
― Molly Guptill Manning, When Books Went to War: The Stories that Helped Us Win World War II
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Weekly Word Count
Hey, I actually started editing the Selkie fic this week! Last night, admittedly, but that counts. I've only got four more chapters of Swings and Roundabouts left and I want to start posting that next, so I need to get a move on.
Talking of Swings and Roundabouts, chapter 4 is up and we've now covered enemies to fuckbuddies to friends to friends with benefits... but I did maybe miss a few steps out of that tag, so I'm afraid they're not just gonna skip straight to lovers from here. Where would be the fun in that.
Also posted the Stony wedding guest AU fic to AO3 yesterday under the title Plus one, so that's going well.
I wrote a bit more on Witch!Bucky as well - introducing Sam and apparently surprise Darcy... which I wasn't expecting. So far there's been quite a small cast of characters in this fic (it's Bucky POV and Bucky is an emo hermit in this fic apparently) but I knew more would have to be introduced eventually. I just wasn't sure who it was going to be. Or where it was going to go. I think I've worked out how Loki fits in, though. Still haven't watched the show to get an up to date characterisation for him. But then I still haven't been able to make myself watch FatWS either, so...
Also wrote a bit on another couple of ficlets that may or may not be going anywhere.
The next few weeks are going to be busy. I'm going away a couple of times - barring natural disasters and pandemica, obviously. And my boss is currently off work for a couple of weeks as well, so that's going to be hectic. No clue how it's all going to go, but I plan to make thorough use of AO3's draft system to make sure I get things out when I want to. Also, Nanowrimo starts... I missed Inktober this year because I just forgot, honestly, but Nano's pretty much a set part of my life these days, so I'm gonna try.
Word Counts
Witch!Bucky - 1,151 words
Random ficlets - 992 words
Total word count - 2,143
Priorities
Post Chapter 5 of Swings and Roundabouts
Post Winterhawk secrets ficlet
Edit more
Start Nanowrimo
Write fic (non specific because honestly I don't really know atm)
Now I have to go and make pumpkin pie... and pumpkin cake. Because I am a crazy person.
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Don’t Let Your NaNoWriMo Engine Idle
Now that November is over, you may be taking some time to rest, recover, pursue things other than writing—or possibly continue to work on your story! Today, author and baker Amy Wallen shares some ins-pie-ration for moving forward with your novel:
Coming off the adrenaline rush of NaNoWriMo, so many feelings rush through us—relief, pride, and exhaustion are just a few of them.
Relief because, woohoo, you survived! Those last few days as you rounded the bend when your family wanted a pie, and you had to be nice to your in-laws, you just about gave in, but instead you bought a pie at the store, kept your mouth shut, and got your writing done. Or, like me, maybe you wrote extra before and after to make up for taking that day or two of rest (shhh, don’t tell) over the holiday. But, whew, you typed the 50,000 words by the end.
Pride! You should be dancing the Snoopy dance because you did it, you met your goal; or even if you didn’t quite meet the goal, you kept at it and reached the finish line—first draft of a novel, or a hell of a start.
Exhaustion because even though you let the laundry pile up, ate more prepared than fresh foods, and your exercise regimen may have slacked off, you still had to go about your regular day (some of us had to keep earning a living).
You are on the other side and it feels so good. Reaching a goal does that—makes us feel exhilarated and gives us the incentive to keep trying for more, to reach another goal, and another.
NaNoWriMo is just the beginning. “Beginning?!” you ask. “You want me to do that same big push forever?”
Why not? Agatha Christie did. Okay, maybe we aren’t all Guinness Book of World Record writers, but we are all writers, every single writer has one thing in common with all other writers—we write. Every day.
Maybe there’s that adjustment made for getting around the holiday bend, but November was the perfect warm up for getting that daily habit revved up and set into place.
December has a few holidays in it too, and more pies to be baked. But your writing still needs to be nurtured. Don’t you hear it calling to you? That draft is ready to be revised and rewritten, submitted, and then out in the world! NaNoWriMo provided the jumping off, so don’t let your novel freefall with no one to catch it. Let the laundry pile up a little longer (clearly everyone survived wearing their sweater an extra day or two), buy your pies from your pie baker friend, and give your novel that gift of attention it deserves. Keep the momentum going, because it’s a whole lot harder to get a cold engine started again than to stay warmed up because January is just around the corner.
January, the month of resolutions. No one ever made a resolution to do more laundry, but plenty of resolutions have been broken to finish that novel. If you stay with it, by spring you could have the first of two novels written for the year, like Agatha. Or, at the very least, another draft.
Set a goal, then another. When you’re exhausted, stop and make a pie. Then pick up your pen again and keep writing. How else are we ever going to get to read your book?
Amy Wallen is most recently the author of How to Write a Novel in 20 Pies: Sweet & Savory Secrets of Surviving the Writing Life. Bestselling author of a novel, and a memoir, she teaches writing workshops in California, France, and anywhere she’s invited, usually with pie. She was associate director of the New York State Summer Writers Institute for 7 years and founded DimeStories—three-minute stories told by the author and featured on NPR. https://www.amywallen.com/
Illustrations by Emil Wilson.
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It started with a bang and ended with a dang. Yup, that’s the best way to summarize this year... writing wise, at least, because, to be fair, other aspects of my life have moved on quite well.
Thanks to 2020′s Nanowrimo, and even though I didn’t win it technically, I was able to carry until the first half of January the habit of writing a little every day. And then life hit me with a (un)expected surprise. I got pregnant. The exhaustion and nausea that come with it killed my creativity entirely.
I’ve only been able to truly reconnect with my story recently, and thing is, I really want to finish it.
During the months I wasn’t writing, I didn’t stay entirely idle either. I chose what I hope will be my, for a long time if not forever, note-taking tool, but also book bible storing: Obsidian. I put back a lot of my digital notes in it, and I started to do the same with some notes I only have in paper format. It will take a long time to complete, but it’s satisfying to see my thoughts connect.
I also transferred the first draft of The Dragons of Jamaedo into Scrivener. I only have a few more extracts to type, and then I’ll need to finish it. From the bits I reread, I already have edits I want to do. Mostly in term of character’s voice. I feel like Mihee should be someone sophisticated who uses complicated words, while Taeyeon is a matter-of-fact kinda guy.
So here’s to hoping that next year I will find the time and the will to finish my story. I might need to be mostly off tumblr for a while longer, because my work life is getting a revamp, and my daughter will (rightfully) steal some of my free time.
Some original posts of this year: Characters Moodboards (for some reason the one I published in 2020 doesn’t show up...), Food comes to your plate, The Wanderer wip intro, and my most successful post of the year.
banner by @personnedelalune
#ayearofwriting#2021#writeblr#I feel like I should do a re-intro post#but not yet#btw#sorry I'm a little late for this event
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👻 🖊 📝 🧠💭
i cannot help myself any excuse to hear my dear pal talk about their writing is an excuse ill snatch up
Aaaaaa thank you! And I have a lot of fun doing these things, so I'm glad we're both having fun!
👻 - What is one WIP you think you may never pick back up?
For fandom - none. I haven't been writing fanfics long enough to have anything to give up on, and anything that I get to the publishing stage I will finish. It just might take a while. But as for personal projects, I have a bunch of old WIPs from NaNoWriMo and other projects that are long-abandoned.
🖊 - Post a snippet from a current WIP.
"Later, Gordon would never be sure how he made it through the two hours after he woke up on the wrong side of the trash compacter. Just moving through the throbbing pain in his arm took more effort than he could manage, so he did something he’d been warned against doing since he came online, and dialed his sense of touch back so far it was nearly nonexistent. He stumbled numb across a deserted compound, into a building, through some halls, and then he nearly tripped over Tommy.
After that, things were even more chaotic. Tommy led him through the tunnels of Black Mesa’s infrastructure, across vats of unidentifiable liquid in unnatural colors, over damaged catwalks that creaked with every step, and into a flooded corridor that emerged into a special kind of hell..."
📝 - What is one growth area you have for your writing?
I need to work on my patience. And also outlining. Which for me is kind of the same thing. I have a bad habit of finishing a chapter, briefly editing it, and posting it the same night - which can lead to typos, awkward wording, etc. And since I don't outline a lot for most of my stuff, I'm losing out on chances to have strong themes, foreshadowing, etc.
🧠 - What’s an idea you have that you can’t quite call a WIP yet?
You and I were actually just talking about this - the potential "soulmate-shares-your-pain" AU that I might have to write now. I'm not sure whether to make it really comedic or really angsty...but either way, it's going on the back burner until I can get some more of my ongoing things done.
💭 - What is a headcanon you have about your own work?
I don't think this will come up in the text of Some Stars Are Not Enough, but I envision the crew being about two generations off Earth - and that's an Earth that's already been space-faring for a while. They sent people to the planet that contains Black Mesa to terraform it, but something got fucked up with that and so they have to live underground for a few more decades. I wanted them to be comfortable in space, but not so far off Earth that I couldn't make pop culture references.
#askbox#fic ask game#peachquarters#my words#writing#hlvrai#only because of the snippet#i may have already talked about the some stars thing with you whoops#but it's something that's kinda fun to know in general#i think#thanks peach!
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9. In All My Dreams I Drown
Pairing(s): Pre-romantic Dukeceit
First chapter - Previous chapter - Next chapter
Warnings: Implied child abuse, vomiting, dirty humor, basically Remus is Very Thirsty™ for that Snake Booty
Characters: Janus “Deceit” Sanders, Remus Sanders
Summary: It is time for Remus’ first magic lessons
Word Count: 10213
Author’s Note: Heeeey there... Been a while, huh? Sorry if this took so long, I had to take a mental health break from writing for a while. But the good news is that I joined NaNoWriMo! I didn't hit 50k unfortunately, but I did hit nearly 30k! Anyways, enjoy!
Taglist: @avocados26, @fandoms-will-collide @nottoonormalme, @bihighandgivinghighfives, @atticusfinchthelegend, @hekking-happy-nonsense, @lockmcduckwoodchuck
If you want to be removed or added to the taglist, just ask!
Read on AO3
He was floating.
Remus wasn’t sure how, but it didn’t matter. He felt light as a feather, a drowsy grin stretching on his face. His gaze idly, unhurriedly, moved up. Stars and galaxies twinkled above him; shining in a symphony of colours that made him half-heartedly wish he had his sketchbook with him. Their light was filtered however… As if he was looking at them from underwater. Was he in the ocean? How was he even breathing?
Remus leaned back against his partner, and all those silly questions left his head. The man behind him was the only solid thing in this floaty, tranquil world of his, and the only thing that mattered right now. Hands ran down Remus’ body, lazily exploring his skin. They traced down his back in small circles, before sliding up and pulling through his hair, making him almost purr in contentment.
“Aren’t you a lovely thing, my little prince.” A voice amusedly crooned into his ear. It was not just a voice. It was without a doubt the loveliest voice Remus had ever heard, and he would never tire of listening to it.
“I’m your lovely thing.” Remus answered with a grin.
“Are you now? Does that mean…” Remus felt a playful bite in his neck, scales dragging along his skin. “You want to stay with me?”
“Yes…” Remus answered in a haze.
“Will you be loyal to me?”
“Yes…”
“Will you help me?”
“Yes…” Remus moaned. “Yes.”
Abruptly the man behind him disappeared and Remus fell. He shouted in surprise as gravity suddenly had its hold back on him as he crashed hard into the painfully solid ground beneath him. Bewildered, he sat up and looked around. The stars above his head died away, one by one. Until he was left in pitch-black darkness.
“Worthless traitor.” A chorus of new voices echoed, the sheer disgust in them making Remus’ stomach turn.
“No! I’m not-! I don’t-!”
“Turn your back on us, after all that we have done for you.”
“You’ve done NOTHING for me!” Remus screamed as he shuffled back. “You deserve what’s coming for you!
“Deserve?” The voices laughed coldly. “You know what you deserve?”
A harsh wind knocked Remus back onto his back.
“You deserve to be punished.”
No! Anything but that! He tried to stand and run, but painfully bumped his head into a sudden low ceiling. He crumpled to the ground, nursing his aching head. The groaning sound of wood and stone surrounded him, deafening him.
The walls-! The walls were closing in!
“No… No!! NO!!” Remus screamed as the room became smaller and smaller, pushing onto him until they were squishing him down. It didn’t stop him from kicking and banging at the unyielding walls, his arms and legs barely able to move in the space that kept getting smaller and smaller. Even as he screamed as hard as he could, he could feel the air becoming thinner and thinner. He couldn’t breathe, he couldn’t breathe, he couldn’t breathe-!!
Then he heard it. The sound he always dreaded. A lock falling into place and a key being turned.
“That is what you deserve.” The cold chorus of disgusted voices said from beyond the walls.
“NO!! PLEASE NO!! LET ME OUT, PLEASE LET ME OUT I WON’T THINK I WON’T SPEAK!!” Remus banged and pounded as the walls pressed in, slowly suffocating him. “JUST LET ME OUT PLEASE!!”
“PLEASE!!” Remus screamed as he rolled over, fighting against the hold the walls had on him. Funnily enough, now they seemed to yield a little easier. They felt a lot softer too. They were white. They were… Sheets?
Panting Remus sat up and looked around wildly. Rough stonewalls, large windows showing mountaintops and a sky slowly turning bright, a small desk and a fireplace… This was not his room-! Where the FUCK was he-??
-Lovely mismatched eyes, looking at him like he was a puzzle he wasn’t quite sure how to solve yet-
Slowly Remus’ breath evened. Oh. Right. Not a hopeful fantasy then. The last few days actually happened.
“Stupid fucking dream…” Remus muttered, trying to free his arms from their cotton prison. Fuck it, the dream had started out so nice too! The ghost memory of the hands in his hair made him sigh. Couldn’t that part just have continued for a little while?
As he sat up and tried to shake away the lingering dread the dream had caused, he looked around his chambers. Heh, funny how his actual life had become more dreamlike in just three days. It was almost impossible to believe!
…Unless he was still dreaming?
He pinched his arm. Nope, definitely awake, and still in the castle of a legendary warlock, who somehow seemed to tolerate his company enough to let him stay here.
…Not only that, he remembered. He was going to be taught magic.
Instantly erasing any leftover terror the dream had caused, Remus grinned widely.
“WOOO!!” He yelled, throwing himself back onto the very soft bed. He rolled around giggling wildly. It got him tangled in the sheets even further, but he didn’t care. He couldn’t hold in all the sheer excitement even if he wanted to try. Him! Him, learning magic!! Remus, the wizard! Remus, the sorcerer! Perhaps some day even… Remus the warlock!
Finally slowing to a halt Remus stared up at the ceiling for a while, his mind reeling with the options of what could happen today. Would he be taught how to do light illusions, just like he had seen on his ninth birthday? Or would he make potions like Virgil did? Perhaps he would be taught how to summon fire!
And let’s not forget just exactly who would be doing the teaching... Remus bit his bottom lip, excited anticipation making him squirm in his place. He had never understood people who had Sexy Teacher fantasies, but oooooh man did he get them now. It would just be the two of them, literal magic in the air… The idea alone made his heart flutter. Ugh, gross, his heart fluttered. Was this how Roman felt whenever he saw Patty-cakes? How did he ever get anything done?
Finally untangling himself from his sheets, Remus jumped out of bed and sprinted towards his luxurious bathroom with an eagerness he hadn’t felt in, well… Ever. He washed and dressed himself hurriedly.
“Right,” He said to his reflection. “Rough start yesterday! But it doesn’t matter! I can still turn this around!”
Can you though? The voice of reason chimed in. Oh wow, he was early today.
“Yes I can! I just need to make sure to act like Roman, and everything will work out just fine!”
Your disillusions could almost be called cute, if they weren’t so damn pathetic.
“Whatever,” Remus dismissed, ignoring the swirl of uncertainty in his stomach. “I just have to channel my inner Roman! I gotta think like Roman!” He placed his fingers at his temples. “Become the Roman! Right! What does Roman like??” He slapped his cheeks. “What. Does. Roman. Like?”
Remus wracked his brain for a few minutes, staring at his reflection with all the concentration of a child trying to win a staring contest.
“…Horse riding!” He eventually blurted. “Chubby men! The latest fashion trends! Boring dinners! What’s that? Why, I certainly want to kiss that ugly ass baby of yours! Just as long as it doesn’t drool on my ivory jacket! No, it’s not white, it’s ivory, you uncivilized peasant! Oh, let me just flip my luscious locks in this non-existent breeze as I trot towards the dance floor!”
Satisfied Remus nodded at himself. Oh yeah. He had this in the bag.
Leaving his chambers Remus took off towards the dining room. It had taken him a couple of hours yesterday, but eventually he had found his bedchambers again, where a small lunch was waiting for him. He had taken the rest of the day to map out the route between his bedchambers and the dining room until he was confident he could find it without too much trouble. Honestly, this place was a goddamn maze.
In the end he took only one wrong turn before he found the dining room again. The warlock wasn’t there yet. Remus shrugged off his disappointment as he took the same seat as he did the day before. He supposed he was too early anyway. The sober food hadn’t changed; they were still the same plates filled with fruits, dark bread and dried fish. Not exactly a varied diet in this castle, heh?
No matter. Remus' stomach growled anyhow. He already reached out to fill his plate, but paused midway. Uncertainly his hand hovered over the food. Was he… Allowed to eat now? His host hadn’t arrived yet… What if he accidentally insulted him by not waiting for him?
He shook his head. It was not worth the potential reprimand if he did eat. So Remus sat back and waited.
And waited.
Remus wiggled in his seat, tapping his fingers against the wood of the table. Boredom quickly took over. Fuck, he shouldn’t have arrived this early. Now what was he supposed to do?
He eyed the spare firewood for a second, but the dinner knife turned out to be too dull for whittling. He really missed his sketchbook by now. Why oh why hadn’t he brought it on his quest with him?
With nothing else to do Remus let his head fall back against the chair and started to tap out a little tune on the table. He hummed lowly, little no nonsense lyrics floating to his brain as he experimented with the melody.
“Went to the mountains today,” He sang to himself. “Went to the mountains and expected to slay… Little did I know that I would stay, oooh that I would stay…”
Really getting into it, Remus gently started tapping a knife against his glass alongside his other hand that still tapped the table, creating a whole new melody.
“Went to the mountains to find my destiny,” He now rocked back and forth in his chair. “How could I know that instead destiny would find me?”
“Very lovely.” A voice commented. Remus jumped in his chair with a shout, knocking over his glass. His heart beat a mile a minute as he turned to the right, finding the warlock sitting in the opposite chair, looking as hot as ever. Eris was once more wrapped around his shoulders, and the cobra glowered suspiciously at him.
“An original?” Deceit asked with a half smirk.
“Uuh, yeah,” Remus nodded as he looked between Deceit and the door, which he confirmed with a quick glance was still closed. “Are you trying to give me a heart attack or is scaring people shitless just a hobby of yours?”
Fuck, Remus cringed, that was too forward, wasn’t it? Too Remus, not enough Roman. Luckily the warlock only shrugged.
“Nothing like a little scare in the morning to get the blood pumping, as I totally always say,” Deceit grabbed an apple from the fruit plate. “Don’t you agree?”
Remus quickly nodded. He would agree with anything as long as the warlock just kept talking in that velvety voice. Somehow he kept forgetting just how brain meltingly gorgeous it was.
“You’re quite early.” The warlock said as he rubbed the apple against his sleeve. “Bad night or just eager to start the day?”
“Eager to start the day!” Remus beamed, cheerfully ignoring his dream from last night. “I am ready to do some magic!” Enthusiastically he started piling his plate full. “Let me just eat something real quick and then I’m ready-!”
“You haven’t eaten yet?” The warlock frowned.
Remus halted. “No…?” He said uncertainly.
“Why ever not?”
“I… Uhh…” Remus fidgeted. “I wasn’t sure if it was… Allowed?”
“Allowed? Oh stars above…”
Remus cringed. He did something wrong. Already. For fuck’s sake, the day hadn’t even started yet!
Obviously. What did you expect?
“I’m sorry.” He said quickly.
“No, you don’t need to-! Remus, understand this,” The warlock’s voice lost all its teasing quality. “You are completely free to do whatever you need to make yourself at home here. You don’t need my permission to eat, drink or otherwise make yourself comfortable. I mean, goodness,” The warlock huffed a laugh as he lifted the apple to his lips. “Next you’ll ask me to bathe you.”
Remus quickly shoved a forkful of fish in his mouth before he could moan out ‘Oh, please do’. The salty flavour sobered him up enough to not let any delightful bathing fantasies grab his attention for too long. Chewing like his sanity depended on it Remus quickly shoved a few more bites into his mouth, looking to his right to show that yes! He was eating now! Only to find that the warlock paid him no mind, focusing on his own food instead. Deceit’s fangs glistened in the light of the fire as he finally sunk his teeth into the apple, breaking the skin and taking a bite. A drop of juice gathered at the corner of his mouth, and he absentmindedly licked it away. Did Remus’ eyes fool him, or had it been a split tongue he had gotten a brief flash of?
Remus had to gulp and swallow his food, even though it was too big of a mouthful to go down comfortably. This was unfair; this was so unfair! No one was allowed to be this hot while just eating a fucking apple, of all things.
He wanted to lean forward and kiss him breathless. He wanted to taste the sweetness of the apple on his tongue. He wanted those fangs to bite his bottom lip, a low growl emitting from the warlock. He wanted to pull back, look in those mismatched eyes and hear him say-
“You’re stabbing your face with a fork.”
Remus blinked, the images disappearing, leaving him with the very real warlock giving him a weird look. “Wha…?” He asked dumbly.
“The fork you’re currently stabbing in your own face?” Deceit repeated deadpan, and now Remus finally noticed the pricking sensation in his cheek. He floundered, almost dropping the utensil as he quickly threw the fork over his shoulder.
“I do that! Sometimes!” Remus fumbled as the fork landed behind him with a ting. “Part of my, uuuhm…” Shit, shit! Quick! What would Roman say, what would Roman say??
“…Skin care routine?”
Somewhere, somehow, Remus’ inner Roman started crying.
“Ah, of course!” Deceit said. “How silly of me, to just forget the single most important step of every skincare routine!”
“HAhahahha, yeaaah…” Remus choked. “So silly!”
“Well then,” The warlock dropped the half eaten apple on his plate. “If you’re finished with eating and your, ahem- skin care routine,” Deceit rose from his chair. “How about we get started?”
--
“What are we going to do first??” Remus asked, barely able to keep himself from hopping up and down as he followed the warlock through the castle’s halls. “Fire from my hands?? Light illusions?? Holy shit, am I going to learn how to teleport??”
Eris gave him a disapproving glare, but the warlock only chuckled. “While I appreciate your enthusiasm, we’re going to start with something different.”
“Oh.” Remus shoulders sagged. “Like what?”
Deceit threw him an amused look over his shoulder. “Like some beginners lessons, perhaps?”
“Aaaw…”
“No need to sound so disappointed! We’ll get where you want eventually.”
“Tomorrow?” Remus hopefully asked.
“No.”
“Aaaw!”
“Honestly,” The warlock laughed and stopped in his tracks to turn to him. “Do you expect to become an expert at everything you do within a day?”
“No, but I would sure as hell would like to!”
“Don’t we all…” The warlock shook his head. “But I’m afraid that’s not how it works. Magic, like all crafts, requires studying, time and discipline.”
Remus grimaced. Oh great, his least favourite STD.
“Look, I know you said you’re an amazing teacher, and I believe you!” Remus tried again. “But I was not joking when I said I’m horrible at learning!”
“I still don’t believe that.”
Trust me, you will, the voice of reason piped in, making Remus wince.
“Isn’t there like a magical amulet or something that can give me super instant magic?” Remus asked. “Instead of wasting your time?
“That’s now how magical amulets work, or even how magic works,” Deceit laughed. “A magical amulet can only enhance a person’s magic, not create it.”
Not even trying to stifle the desperate whine that left his throat Remus threw his hands up in frustration. “Then how does magic work??”
The warlock thought that over a few seconds. “Imagine…” Deceit eventually slowly said. “Imagine the world around you as a calm lake. And see magic as dropping a stone in the middle of that lake. One small act creates a ripple, which spreads over the water. Changing the world as its waves surge through it. Of course, that calm lake would have remained a calm lake if you had never been there. Because those ripples start…” Deceit tapped a finger against Remus’ chest. “With you.”
Remus held a hand over the place where the warlock touched. His heart thrummed against his palm.
“So…” Remus frowned, his head slightly spinning. “Magic is like water where I dropped a stone in…?”
“Correct.”
“…But if that stone sinks, does that mean the world will just swallow up my magic? And if they’re ripples, does that mean that magic eventually becomes less powerful the more it spreads?
“I-” Deceit blinked a few times, looking mildly bewildered. “No? I mean, that’s not-! Look, it’s not a perfect metaphor-!”
“Also how big is the stone? I mean a stone won’t give much ripples! Why not throw a rock in? A boulder?? An entire mountain-!”
“The point is!” Deceit interrupted. “That all the things you wish to do won’t be possible if you don’t summon your own core magic first! That is the key to magic, not spells or potions!”
“Does that mean spells are the ripples-?”
“Forget the ripples!” Deceit said through gritted teeth.
“Right, sorry.”
The warlock raised a hand. He closed his eyes and when he opened them, his eyes were burning in that now familiar spellbinding molten gold. The gold spread through his veins, his face and hands coming alive like rivers of lava rushed through him instead of blood. Even Eris lit up, the ridges between her scales glowing gold as if red hot coals burned inside of her. Remus stared breathlessly as Deceit became a living golden statue, light pouring from him and Eris, lighting up the dark hallway like they trapped sunlight in their very forms.
“Summon your core magic,” Deceit spoke, gold pouring from his mouth. “With it you can accomplish anything your heart desires, and change your world.”
Currently what Remus’ heart desired was finding out if Deceit’s tongue would burn his if he leaned in and captured those lovely lips in a kiss, but somehow he didn’t think that’s exactly what the warlock meant.
“Summoning my core magic!” Remus grinned and clapped his hands. “Awesome!” His grin tempered somewhat. “How do I do that?”
Deceit closed his hand, and the glow in his eyes and veins disappeared. Eris returned to her normal state as well. Remus blinked some spots in his vision away. His eyes had to get used to the sudden darkness of the hallway again. Taking a calming breath Deceit crossed his arms at the small of his back.
“Close your eyes.”
Remus frowned but obeyed, uncertainly closing his eyes.
“Breathe in deeply,” The warlock’s voice ordered. Remus inhaled. “Very good. Now exhale through your mouth. Think of nothing. Let all thoughts pass by and leave you…”
Think of nothing? Well shit, if that was a requirement for using magic he was fucked.
“Relax your muscles. That includes that frown you currently have.”
Remus quickly relaxed the muscles in his face, allowing his shoulders to sag.
“Continue to breathe deeply. Inhale… Exhale. Inhale… Exhale.”
Remus followed the pattern that the warlock set for a few minutes. He felt a little silly, standing in a hallway and breathing like he was an old man trying to calm his heart after running a marathon. But if it meant listening to that voice for a little longer he was more than happy to continue this odd little exercise.
“Continue breathing in this same pattern,” Deceit said. His voice was slower now, softer. “Now, as you continue breathing… Allow the world to fall away. In this very moment, there is nothing in this universe but you and my voice. Everything else ceases to exist.”
Nothing else existed? Man, what he wouldn’t give for a universe where it was just the two of them…
“Continue breathing like I showed you,” The warlock’s voice had shifted. Now it came from his right, still ever so quiet. “With every breath the world falls away bit by bit, until the only thing left is you. You, and my voice… At this very moment, you need nothing else.”
The warlock’s voice continued to circle him, closer and closer, yet Remus heard no footsteps. Not even when he strained his ears. His head felt incredibly fuzzy. If it weren’t for the solid ground beneath his feet he would think that the warlock spoke the truth. That in this moment Deceit had taken away everything and left only them, drifting in the vastness of space. The thought was exhilarating.
“Turn yourself inwards…” The warlock said, slower and softer, closer to him than before. “Feel every inhale, every beat of your heart. Search deep inside yourself…”
Remus’ head spun. The world truly became a distant mirage for a brief second, and he distinctly felt like he was floating outside of his own body. Now even the ground felt distant and far away, as if he had left behind such commonalities as stone and mortar. Perhaps, in this moment he really didn’t need them. Fuck, he felt weird… Weird… But amazing.
“Very good, Remus.” Deceit’s voice suddenly came from right behind him, and just like that Remus fell and was slamdunked back into his own body. He jolted, acutely aware of the world around him. The ground beneath his feet, every itch on his arm, every blow of the wind outside and most concerning of all, the very real and solid presence behind him. Warm breath hit the back of his neck, making his hairs stand on end.
“Turn yourself inwards,” Deceit whispered in his silk on leather voice, making all kinds of delicious shivers roll down Remus’ spine and his head fill with warm, bed-tousled fantasies. “Feel your heart beating, in rhythm with every little part of you. Here, at this very place… You will find your core magic.”
Don’t get a boner, don’t get a boner, Remus thought desperately. Don’t get a boner, don’t get a-
Suddenly, Deceit pressed a hand between his shoulder blades, and Remus’ head snapped back with a sharp gasp.
Magic!
Like lightening it struck, alighting every nerve in his body in response. Magic streamed through his blood, bold and confident, filling his head and making it spin with light. This was not like how the hypnotizing had felt. That had filled only his head, dulling his senses and making him feel lazy. This sparked up every cell, every inch of him awakened by its call. His heart beat out an enthusiastic rhythm, answering the thrum of magic that rushed through his body with a melody of its own. Remus blinked his eyes open and gasped again at the sight of his hands. His veins were lit up in a golden glow, making his hands tingle and tremble. He did not need a mirror to know his eyes were alighted in that same golden flare.
The warlock pulled his hand back, and just like that the magic rushed away. Remus wanted to howl when the magic started to leave him. He wanted to grab onto the feeling with claws and teeth, to try to keep it inside of him like a dragon guarding its hoard. Let him have that confident feeling just a little longer, please!
No use. The magic left, leaving him feeling empty as Remus grasped his heart and resisted the urge to cry. He was shaking. Shaking as every fibre of him wanted that feeling back.
“And that,” Deceit said casually, as if he hadn’t just reduced Remus to a trembling mess. “Is magic. Do you understand now why you must summon that first?”
Remus turned to him, shakily. “I want to do that too.” He said breathlessly.
“You will. In time.” Deceit said lightly. “Here is your first assignment. From this day on you will do this breathing exercise every day, until your core magic is brought forth. Understand?”
Remus nodded wildly. “What are some other beginners lessons??” He asked eagerly. He had to get that feeling back, no matter what it took. The warlock smiled, and Remus felt his heart skip a beat. If that happened every time this man so much as looked his way, he would have died from a heart attack by nightfall.
“I know the perfect place to start.” Deceit said.
--
He really had to get used to infinite stairs if he was going to live here for the near future, huh? Remus would never have called himself unfit, but right now the sweat was starting to bead on his forehead and his breath came in heavy pants. The warlock ahead of him didn’t appear to be troubled at all. They had done nothing but climb stairs for what felt like ages, yet he still looked as if he freshly stumbled out of a dark fairy-tale. Eris hadn’t moved from her spot on Deceit’s shoulders, and occasionally she casted a look down at him full of mocking disdain. Remus had no idea how a cobra could convey this sheer amount of dignified disgust at him when she didn’t even have facial features, yet here he was.
“You try climbing all these stairs!” He mouthed at her when she gave him again another look as if she smelled something foul (to be fair, he had been climbing for a while now). Eris pulled up her nose at him with an “Hmph!”movement and nestled her head into the warlock’s curls. Remus squinted bitterly.
He was not going to be jealous of a snake, he was not going to be jealous of a snake-!
As if she tasted his bitterness in the air, Eris burrowed herself a little deeper into the warlock’s hair and threw him such a smug look Remus considered strangling her for a brief second. He settled on sticking his tongue out at her instead, grinning at insulted hiss he got in return.
“Will you two stop fighting?” Deceit exasperatedly said over his shoulder. Remus jumped. How the fuck did he-?
“You,” Deceit said as he scratched Eris’ yellow and black scales. “I told you to be nice.” Eris grumbled and moodily slithered her head inside the warlock’s cloak.
“As for you,” The warlock stopped and turned to Remus, who halted sheepishly in his steps. “Please stop antagonizing my familiar. Trust me, it’s not going to help you endear yourself to her. She’s a delicate lady.”
Remus took one glance at the cobra, who stuck her head out from her hiding place just enough to bare her fangs at him, the murder clear in her eyes and was just about to comment that they had a very different definition of what ‘delicate’ meant, when he frowned.
“Wait, what’s a fami-?”
“Keep up, we’re almost there.” The warlock interrupted as he resumed climbing the stairs. Remus cursed and quickly followed, despite his lungs and legs protesting.
Eventually they reached the top of the stairs, which led them to a narrow hallway with worn double doors at the end. Remus felt some of the sweat on his back turn cold. Hurriedly scrambling after Deceit he tried his best to ignore how the walls seemed to grow narrower and narrower the closer they got the doors.
“Doors!” Remus giggled nervously, trying to distract himself from the hallway. “Obviously the most magical thing of all!”
The warlock chuckled. “You might be more right than you think…” And with that, he pushed the doors open.
Remus blinked at the unexpected brightness that came pouring from the open doors. When he was adjusted to the sudden influx of light and looked around his mouth dropped open. Funny, it had been doing that a lot recently.
They were in a greenhouse. Somehow, at the high top of this mountain, there was a fucking greenhouse. Following the warlock in and instantly forgetting the narrow hallway, Remus spun on his feet to take everything in. The temperature was much milder in here than the rest of the castle, making him relax at the warmth. The distant sound of rushing water filled his ears. Suddenly he wished he had been born with a head completely covered in eyeballs just so he could take in every little detail of the greenhouse and its multitude of greenery. The high glass pane ceiling illuminated the vast array of plants, some he recognized, and some he didn’t. An apple tree stood next to a long elongated plant with large purple flowers, whose leaves swayed as if they were tousled in a non-existent wind. Familiar flowers like roses, daffodils and lilies grew alongside flowers who looked like see-through pink glass, or ones whose petals flickered like a small candle flame. Plants folded their leaves open like silk green fans, others let theirs droop like little golden bells. A willowy tree that carried curtains of silver clustered flowers opened its petals as Deceit and Remus walked past them, and unfurled to reveal long yellow stamens thick with pollen.
“Keep up, will you.” The warlock’s voice came from further ahead. Remus shook his head and tore his gaze away from the plants for now to catch up with Deceit. Hidden amongst the green there stood a worn table, wedged against a rocky wall where a modest indoor waterfall steadily rushed. Remus guessed this had to be where the castle stopped and the mountains began. The steady sound of rushing water became louder, louder than the small stream could be. Remus curiously walked up to the large windows that were opposite of the wall. They were foggy with little water droplets, but could not hide the massive waterfall right next to the window, plunging into a depth that made Remus’ legs feel all jumbly.
“Wicked…” Remus breathed.
“It is quite spectacular, isn’t it?” Deceit said, a pleased undertone in his voice. Remus tore his gaze away from the waterfall to look back at the warlock, who rummaged through the equipment that was scattered all over the table. As Deceit searched through a short pile of books that stood at the edge, Remus stepped closer and curiously inspected the table’s contents. There was a mortar and pestle, a watering can, a wooden cutting board and a knife etched with runes on the side, a book flipped open to a page explaining the anatomy of a plant he did not recognize and more dried plants than he ever saw. More so even than the collection Virgil had hanging from his ceiling, back home.
“What do these do??” He asked, pointing at the runes on the knife.
“A bit more patience, I will start the lesson shortly. But before I do that… Aha!” Finally founding what he was looking for, Deceit turned back to him. “This…” He held something out for him. “Is for you.”
Remus hesitantly took what the warlock held out for him. It was a book. A small, leather-bound tome. Curiously Remus flipped through it, only to find that the pages were all blank.
“What is this? Horrid Spells written in invisible ink?” Remus frowned up at the warlock, who chuckled.
“I’m so tempted to say yes, but no. This,” Deceit tapped a finger against the leather cover. “Is your very own grimoire.”
Remus blinked. “My what now?”
“Your grimoire. Or Book of Shadows, spell book, whatever you wish to call it. The name is not as important as its purpose.”
“Which… is?”
“To document your journey. Everything you learn about magic you put it here. Not only to track your progress, but also to look back if you ever need to remember something you might have forgotten. A grimoire marks a diligent student, and later a true magic user.”
“Wow… Uhm, okay.” Remus turned the book over in his hands, inspecting the simple black leather and the yellowed pages. Now that he thought about it, hadn’t Virgil always read and written in a tattered tome bound in black leather? He wondered if he got his own grimoire from the warlock too…
Oooh, how cool would it be if he used the blood of his enemies to write in this?? Now THAT would make it a properly badass cursed spellbook-
Remus quickly shook his head and repressed that thought faster than Logan would dismiss his weird experiment ideas. Oh nice, he was getting good at that!
“Thank you.” Remus said sincerely as he held the book against his chest. It had been years since anyone had given him something, anything, even as simple as a book. He wished he could give something back in return. What would Roman do? Pay him a compliment maybe…? But what was a good non-weird compliment?
Tell him his face is magnificent, and you totally want to sit on-
Remus quickly squashed that down. Nope, nope, definitely not!
“Now then,” Deceit smiled as he handed Remus a short pencil. “Shall we begin?”
“Yes!!” Remus grabbed the pencil, bouncing in his spot. Finally! “Yes, yes, yes please!!”
“I like your attitude. Here is your first study subject,” Deceit gestured to their surroundings. “Herbology.”
Remus blinked a few times. “Hebelowhatnow?”
“Herbology, meaning the study of magical and mundane plants and their use in occult practices. It is the perfect start for a beginner, as herbology is a type of magic where you don’t necessarily need to have other magical qualities to become an expert in.” Deceit explained as he grabbed and filled the watering can at the indoor waterfall. “And much like potions, it is more of a science than an art.”
“Right, awesome!” Remus opened the book and hastily scribbled ‘Hebelogie’ on the first page. “So is herbology just a fancy name for gardening?”
Deceit chuckled. “Not exactly.” He took his watering can and took off into the greenhouse. Remus followed.
“While it’s true that there are obvious similarities between gardening and herbology, they are two very different things,” Deceit explained while they walked, occasionally watering one of the plants. “For one, gardening is for plants used for either beautification or consumption. A herbology garden is explicitly used for magical purposes.”
“Makes sense, makes sense…” Remus nodded seriously, hoping to sound very knowledgeable.
“Secondly,” Deceit halted for a minute and drew a rune in the dirt of a small bush with heart shaped fruits. “While spells and runes can absolutely be applied in an ordinary garden as well, it’s more common to do these things in a herbology garden.”
“Spells and runes, gotcha!” Remus tried to see what kind of rune Deceit had drawn, but he had to catch up to the other before he could get a clear look.
“Lastly, and most importantly, there are some plants that no gardener without magical experience should ever handle. For example.”
The warlock halted before the tree with the silver clusters of flowers. Once again the flowers unfurled to reveal their yellow stamens. The warlock stooped down and grabbed a bucket with a tightly closed lid, which had been hidden under the greenery of another plant.
“Observe.” He said as he opened the lid. Immediately the sickly stench of rotten meat drifted upwards, making the warlock draw back with a small flinch. Even so though he reached into the bucket with his bare hand, grabbing a handful of slimy, rancid meat and righting himself. Remus’ head completely blanched on the many questions he had as he saw how the tree’s stamens righted themselves, swaying back and forth, as if it reacted to the smell.
“Putidus Carptus.” Deceit said as he threw the meat right into the awaiting flowers. The branches immediately wrapped themselves around the meat, pulling it inwards and out of sight. “Otherwise known as ‘Soldier’s Despair’ in farmer’s tongue. A tree known for sprouting in the midst of a ravaged battlefield, eating away any rot and decay around it. Whole forests have been known to sprout in prior combat zones.” He threw another piece of meat into the flowers, which was met with equal enthusiasm. “Usually it dies out if it has eaten all the decay, but when hungry enough in its final days of bloom it has been known for eating fresh meat as well in its desperation.” The warlock murmured a quick spell and the filth on his hand disappeared. “Funnily enough, it’s flowers and stamens can be used to create multiple healing potions for various illnesses. Just goes to show you even Mother Nature likes irony sometimes.”
Remus nodded, open mouthed and only half hearing the explanation. He stared, starry eyed, at the moving branches as they ate away at the meat.
“That… Is…” He said with a growing grin on his face. “So…” Amazing, awesome, fucking cool as SHIT, his mind supplies, but he said none. Biting back his grin he considered his options. Yes, he thinks it’s cool, but Roman would hate the plant. In fact, he would probably be disgusted by it!
Be like Roman, he reminded himself. Be. Like. Roman.
“…Disturbing,” Remus said finally, despite his heart wanting to stick his hand in the flowers and see if they would nibble on him too. “So very disturbing.”
The warlock gave a short hum. “Its beauty may be lost to those who look no further than what purpose it can serve, but I can appreciate its willingness to do a dirty job.”
Suddenly uncertain if he had said the right thing, Remus turned to the other to ask more. Deceit however seemed to already have moved on, now picking away dead branches of a very normal looking apple tree.
“But if this is a magical garden,” He asked, repressing his doubt for now. “Why are things like apples here? Isn’t that regular garden stuff?”
“Hardly. While it’s true that some plants have more… Obvious magical qualities than others,” Deceit picked away another branch, “More ‘mundane’ plants can actually enhance intentions in spells and potions.”
“Right. Because…” Remus thought for a second. “You choose them based on what your intent with a spell is…?” He hesitantly asked. He was rewarded for his question with another brain melting smile from the warlock.
“That is correct. Well deduced.”
Remus felt something in him swell with pride. He couldn’t remember the last time a teacher (or anyone really) complimented him. Usually people either looked disgusted or annoyed when he asked questions.
Then it hit him. The perfect compliment. One that wasn’t gross or inappropriate. Wiggling his shoulders in excitement he propped his elbow on the tree next to the warlock and planted his other hand on his side.
“So… He started, hoping he sounded casual and failing miserably. “Herbology, potions, spells…” He smiled what he thought was a good imitation of Roman’s signature golden smile. “Is there anything you can’t do?”
The warlock’s smile fell. A flash of some emotion crossed his face, but it was gone before Remus could decipher what it was.
“…Let’s continue.” Deceit said flatly as he turned away from the tree, leaving Remus in his prime flirting pose feeling very confused. After a few seconds of him puzzling what the fuck just happened Remus hastily scrambled after him. Obviously he had said something wrong… But what? For the life of him he could not figure out what.
He’s probably just disgusted by you. Accept it.
“Uuuh, hey!” Remus called out to drown the voice of reason. Deceit stopped and turned.
“What?” He said in that same flat tone. Remus winced, his eyes darting for something, anything-!
“Roses!” Remus quickly said.
“…What about them?” Deceit raised an eyebrow.
“Well, uhm- What kind of magical qualities do roses have?” Remus gestured to the plants in question, which grew alongside the path they currently walked. “I mean the gardens back home were full of them! Don’t tell me I had a secret stash of magic supplies right under my nose and wasted an opportunity to sell them off to the highest bidder!”
Deceit’s stance eased. “Ah, good question.” He said. Remus sagged in relief. Good save there.
“It’s true that roses have no overt magical qualities,” The warlock said made his way to Remus and smoothed out some of the roses. “But they’re used in plenty of potions and spells as enhancers.”
“Like what kind?” Remus asked curiously.
“The thorns can be used in protection spells and minor curses,” Deceit fussed over a white rose, one that hadn’t quite bloomed yet. “With the petals it depends on the colour. Remember, intent is everything. White petals for example can be used for blessings, while yellow petals are useful in anti-depressant potions.”
“Right,” Remus nodded as he scribbled ‘patels and colur meening’ in his grimoire. “And red petals?”
“Oh, those are used for love potions, aphrodisiacs, that kind of thing.”
“R-Really…?” Remus gave himself a mental pat on the back as he managed to push away the delightfully delicious images that the word aphrodisiacs conjured up. “That- That’s interesting…”
“You know,” Deceit said slowly as he looked at the rosebud. “It’s here you find the real difference between gardeners and herbalists.”
“Oh yeah?” Remus raised an eyebrow.
“Yes. While we both agree that nature will always do the most work, sometimes we can give…” Deceit gently touched the bud. A spark of gold flickered at his fingertips, before it spread through the veins of the flower like thin glowing rivers. “A helping hand.”
The flower trembled as it slowly, ever so slowly, unfurled its petals. The golden veins glimmered, casting Deceit’s face in soft light. Lightly Deceit cupped the flower and leaned in to inhale its scent. Remus couldn’t help but stare as a smile softened the sharp angles of the warlock’s face.
“I wish I was that rose…” Remus muttered reverently.
“What did you say?” Deceit blinked up at him.
“I SAID YOU’RE GROSS!!” Remus blurted.
Slapping a hand in front of his mouth, Remus stared at the warlock’s stunned face. Oh fuck oh fuck OH FUCK-
How the fuck do I get myself out of this, what do I do what do I DO-??? Don’t let him ask questions do something follow your instinct QUICK!!!
Turning, Remus grabbed and pulled the nearest plant from the ground and shoved it into his mouth.
“No wait, DON’T EAT THAT-!!”
--
Remus hurled, and added some more of his stomach fluids into the empty flowerpot he was currently hunched over. He lost count at this point how many times he had puked into the clay pot by now, and yet the vomit still came at an alarming speed. The cool hands that diligently brushed his hair back as he was unpleasantly reacquainted with his breakfast only made this whole situation so much worse.
“Well then,” The warlock said dryly. “Hopefully this will be a wise lesson not to eat any plant you’ve never seen before.”
Another miserable roll of his stomach made Remus heave out some more fluids. At this point it was nothing but bile. “W-What the fuck did I eat…?” He managed to miserably whine out.
“That was a little plant called “Atrejeci”. Or, as it is more commonly known, Charcoal Root. In its diluted form it can purify mild poisons from your bloodstream. In its undiluted form however it just purifies the body…” Deceit paused as Remus puked out some more stomach acid. “…In a more literal sense.”
“Cool,” Remus muttered pitifully. “Cool cool cool cool cool. How long is this going to last exactly…?”
“Seeing as you ate nearly half a plant, you’ll probably be here a while.”
“Great…”
“Not to worry, it shouldn’t be fatal in the long run as long as we treat it well.” The warlock patted him between the shoulder blades. “I’m going to get you some water. You’ll be losing a lot of liquids in the coming hour, and we need to make sure you don’t get dehydrated.”
“Okay, you do that…” Remus babbled as footsteps echoed away from him. “I’ll be here…!” He heaved again and leaned his sweaty forehead against the flowerpot’s cool edge. “Not going anywhere…”
Nice going, idiot. Nothing quite says “romance” like gratuitous vomiting!
“Well at least I distracted him…” Remus muttered. His stomach felt like it was determined to burn a hole through his flesh and turn him into the world’s most horrifying fountain.
Ah yes, at least you did that… All the while showing how you are nothing but a screw-up. How long do you think those magic lessons will last now?
“Shut up-” Remus murmured miserably before he felt another hurl coming up and he had to spit out more bile.
--
The serene sounds of vomiting followed Deceit as he made his way to his little indoor waterfall. His new student was an… Odd one, to say the least.
“he’s an idiot.” Eris contributed from his shoulders.
“Be nice, dear.” Deceit distractedly muttered.
“he does not take this seriously. why do you bother?”
“On the contrary,” Deceit answered as he grabbed a wooden pitcher from his supply table. “I think he takes it incredibly seriously.”
Eris gave him a disbelieving head tilt. “how can you tell?”
“Because, my sceptical serpent,” Deceit gave Eris a small flick on her nose, earning him an offended hiss and a snap at his fingers in return. “He wants this chance to prove himself to a near desperate degree.”
Yes, spending more time with Remus this day had given him a clearer image of the prince. The eagerness to please, the careless willingness to put his life into the hands of a complete stranger, the disbelieving joy when he got even the smallest of compliments, the fear and badly hidden flinches when he did something wrong… All of it was starting to paint a picture, and not a very pretty one.
With a scowl he held a pitcher in the waterfall. Goodness, just when he thought he couldn’t hate Augusto more… The man unfortunately just kept surprising him.
Oh well… In a weird sense he supposed he should be thankful that his nemesis had screwed up his parenting this badly. If he hadn’t, it would have been so much harder to persuade Remus to his side. Now he didn’t even need to do anything! The ease almost unnerved him a little bit. Although he definitely could have used that same kind of ease with his… Previous student…
He had wandered quite a bit further from the castle than he usually did. He tried to convince himself it was because he was looking for a specific herb for one of his potions, but in truth… It had been for no other reason than pure restlessness.
The lights of the small city at the base of the mountain gleamed in the darkness of the night. Occasionally shouting of drunken folk would echo upwards to where Deceit stood, silent and observing. He had gotten close enough to the houses that he could see the people walking in the streets, crawling around like busy little ants. Usually he avoided coming this close but alas, it appeared that his hubris had gotten the better of him yet again. Though he doubted anyone would see him even if they did bother to look up. His black cloak made him one with the shadows. Invisible to those unsuspecting fools who cowered at the mere mention of his existence.
The night sky deepened, and one by one the lights went out in the city. People sought out their warm homes and comfy beds, yet the warlock kept looking until the quiet of the mountains pressed in on him once more. Like he was suffocated under a pillow.
Deceit sighed. Why did he come here? More importantly, why did he stay here so long? Reluctantly he tore his gaze away from the darkened city and started to walk up the path he walked a thousand times before. Eris would probably have started to worry by now. He better try to come up with some good excuse-
He stopped. He perked his ears, frowning. Deceit had been in the mountains for a very, very long time. He knew every sound these peaks and valleys made at night by heart, every creature’s howl, every whisper the wind would carry.
What he heard now however? That decidedly did not belong here.
Curiously he followed the sound. To him it almost sounded like a wounded animal, but the closer and closer he got he slowly realized that couldn’t be it. That’s how he found the ravine.
The ravines could be found all throughout the mountains. Treacherous, gaping chasms hidden in the rough landscape. Invisible to the eye until it was too late. Especially in the dark, when the shadows would hide their depths until someone stumbled into them. Deceit suspected that these fissures had added more people to the missing list than he ever did. Unless you were very careful or knew the mountain paths well it was almost impossible to avoid them.
Treading carefully towards the rocky edge of the fissure, Deceit peered in. It was not as deep as some of these ravines could get, but still deep enough that the moonlight did not reach all the way down. Luckily Deceit’s night vision had always been very good, so he could just make out the figure squirming at the bottom. Hurt grunts floated up towards him as the person in the fissure tried to wobbly stand, only to fall back over with an anguished wail.
Deceit tilted his head. Why on earth had they tried to enter the Desolate Mountains? Surely if they lived this close they must have heard the stories of him and his infamous reputation. Hadn’t those been enough? He almost felt a little insulted.
Well, he supposed it didn’t matter now. Whoever the poor sod was, if they were hurt they wouldn’t be able to climb out of the fissure by themselves. They would just become another disappearance. Another rumour for the gossipers down below. Deceit shrugged and turned to leave.
“Shit-! Come on, get up get up-! OW!!”
Deceit froze on the spot. The voice that drifted upwards from the fissure kept on babbling, panicked, pained and…
And they sounded so young.
Another distressed ‘No, no! Get up please!’ floating up only confirmed it. Whoever it was down there, they were young. Hell, they sounded like they hadn’t quite hit puberty yet. Maybe it was one of those snot-lipped city kids who dared each other to go in the mountains to prove how brave they were. But even then they never got this far up! Why had this kid travelled all this way?
Deceit shook his head. It was none of his business. Surely if their parents missed them they would come and look for them.
…But would they be on time? Even if they dared to enter the mountains for a rescue mission (which was unlikely) it did not guarantee that the kid was found before a predator with less mercy than Deceit would. Or before he starved to death, or any other gruesome fate. The mountains were cruel, especially to those who were hurt. By this rate the kid would most likely be dead by morning…
No, this was ridiculous! He didn’t know the little idiot, and besides! They knew the dangers when they went into the mountains! It was their own fault for coming here!
Deceit knew all that, and yet his feet refused to move away from the fissure. A pained cry echoed towards him, causing something to tug at the tattered strings of his heart and- Oh no, was that his conscious talking??? He thought he got rid of that thing years ago!
Another distressed wail. Deceit closed his eyes, frustration and resignation coming out in a long grunting sigh before he snapped his fingers and transported himself. Right before the teenager stuck at the bottom of the ravine.
At first they didn’t notice him. The boy- Or at least, Deceit thought it was a boy- looked to be around twelve or thirteen. Dark locks fell down in unruly bangs, hiding away his eyes behind a thick curtain of hair. The boy grunted and grabbed the rocky wall to try to stand up once more. Incredibly dumb of him. If Deceit had to judge from the sight of the boy’s ankle, which was wrapped in improvised bandages darkened with blood and bent at an angle that couldn’t mean anything good, he had made quite a nasty fall.
As Deceit moved to get a better look, the boy finally noticed him and fell back down with a startled shout.
“Who are you?!” The boy yelled, shuffling backwards. Deceit held up his hands in a calming gesture.
“I’m not here to harm you.”
“Like hell you are!”
Deceit rolled his eyes impatiently and didn’t answer. What use was explaining now when that ankle was in such desperate need for a healing?
“Stay back!” The boy yelled as Deceit kept advancing in on him. “I’m warning you!”
“Foolish boy, I’m just here to help you-!”
“I am the warlock of these mountains!” The boy growled with a ferocity that made Deceit pause in his steps. “Dare to come any closer and I will hex your ass!”
Blinking a few times in surprise, Deceit fought against the smile that tugged at the corners of his mouth. Now that was one he hadn’t heard before. If it hadn’t been for the underlying prepubescent quality of the boy’s voice, he would have actually sounded threatening enough to fool someone.
“I said stay back!!” The boy growled once more as Deceit stepped closer. “Didn’t you hear me?! I am the warlock of these mountains!!”
“Oooh?” Deceit said amusedly as he kneeled to the boy’s eye height. A snap of his fingers made a small flame flicker to life in his palm, illuminating his face in threatening shadows. “Are you now…?” He grinned, his fangs flashing in the flickering light.
In the light of the flame Deceit saw the colour drain from the boy’s cheeks as he realized his mistake.
“Shit. Shit, shit, shit- I’m sorry-!” The boy babbled as he tried his best to crawl even further back, despite the stone behind him. “I’m so sorry, I didn’t know-! I didn’t mean to insult you, I’m sorry-!”
“Look into my eyes.” Deceit said calmly.
“I’m sorry, I’m sorry, please don’t hurt me, I didn’t mean it-!”
“I said look into my eyes.”
At the commanding hiss the boy’s eyes unwillingly snapped up and looked right into the bright glow of Deceit’s hypnotizing gaze. As he saw the boy’s eyes glaze over in molten gold obedience Deceit smirked.
“There we go! Was that so hard?” Deceit drawled. “Now, tell me the truth. What is your name?”
“V-Virgil…” The boy stammered. “Virgil Becker.”
“Virgil.” Deceit nodded. “Such a pleasure to meet you! What exactly are you doing in my mountains, Virgil?”
“I… I…” Virgil seemed to struggle to find the words. Trying to lie already? Goodness, what a shame.
“No use lying to me, boy. Why are you here?”
“I ran away!” The truth finally came out in a rush.
“Right,” Deceit nodded. “And your first idea was to come here? That seems a little foolish, don’t you agree? What, were you looking to prove yourself? Hoping to earn your peers’ praise by pretending you’re brave?”
“N-No…” Virgil shook his head. “I came here because… Because…”
“Because…?”
“Because he wouldn’t follow me if I went into the mountains.”
Deceit paused. Forgetting his ‘dreaded warlock’ act for a second, he finally fully took in the boy in front of him. His thin frame, the hollowed out face. He squinted. Now that he took a closer look, there seemed to be something… Hiddenbehind the boy’s long bangs.
Virgil flinched as Deceit reached out his hand, but all he did was gently brush away his bangs from his eyes. Deceit’s breath hitched. Virgil’s left eye was almost swollen shut, dark purple and yellow bruising pulling most of his eye white from sight. It didn’t look like he had gotten it falling down. It looked to be at least a few days old.
“Oh dear…” Deceit said softly. “This world has hurt you terribly, hasn’t it…?”
Perhaps it was Deceit’s words, or his drastically gentler tone, but the fear seemed to disappear from the boy’s shaking frame. Confusion seemed to take its place as Virgil openly gawked at Deceit. Suddenly uncomfortable under the boy’s stare Deceit grappled to find back his control.
“Sssleep.” Deceit hurriedly commanded. Immediately Virgil’s eyes started drooping, and though he valiantly tried to fight it off it was no use. Deceit breathed a sigh of relief as Virgil’s head eventually nodded forward and he fell into a deep slumber.
Hoping to get rid of the uncomfortable ache in his stomach, Deceit finally focused on the boy’s ankle. As he unwrapped the boy’s improvised bandages he fought back a wince. Up close it was even worse than he had initially thought. The skin had broken, and if he saw it correctly through all the clotted blood the bone was actually sticking out. Not only that, but also the too warm skin and the beginning of blackened veins surrounding the wound suggested that the boy was developing an infection. This was not something he could just heal then and there. The boy needed five separate healing sessions at the very least.
He shook his head. No. No, this was not his problem. He would heal the boy just enough that he wouldn’t die for the next 24 hours and leave him at the edge of the mountains. He would go back to his life thinking this encounter was just a fever dream, and they would go their happy separate ways.
Except… What if he didn’t survive it? What if he couldn’t stop the infection from spreading to his heart, and the boy would die a miserable death before he could even reach his hometown again? Besides, there were still other predators on the loose. Deceit highly doubted a mountain lion or one of the Fair Folk would be as kind as him.
Not only that, what if the boy did somehow survive and didn’t think it was a dream? What if he told everyone about this encounter? Yes, most people would probably declare him crazy, but there would always be people who would believe him. Who would know the warlock they feared had not only spared, but also healed someone who went into his mountains. The reputation he had so carefully cultivated would slowly fall apart, and before you know it some brainless knights would march into the mountains again to come for him. He couldn’t let that happen!
Or, some traitorous part of Deceit whispered as he looked at the unconscious boy, what if the one he fled away from will find him first…?
He didn’t realize he had dug his talons into the flesh of his own palms until his skin broke and small beads of red trickled from his clenched fists. Cursing the traitorous little voice and every deity he could think of, Deceit spat out a spell under his breath. The boy levitated from the ground, his head rolling backwards like a marionette without its strings as he floated in mid-air. Deceit rose, already dreading the journey home.
How on earth was he going to explain this to Eris?
The sound of another hurl pulled him out of his memories. Deceit shook his head and grabbed the pitcher, which was full by now. There was no use dwelling on his past mistakes. All he had to do was make sure he wouldn’t repeat them.
Walking back to his newest student with the pitcher in hand, Deceit carefully thought over his next step. Perhaps it was wiser to not jump to his next course of action too quick. It appeared he was compromised anyhow. He shuddered. At first he had thought he had finally found the person who could actually successfully lie to him... Wasn’t that a terrifying thought?
But thank the stars that hadn’t been the case. He just hadn’t seen his honesty. True honesty… Now that was something he hadn’t seen in a long while. No wonder he hadn’t recognized it at first.
Nevertheless, better to tread more carefully. He had always prided himself on his talent to see right through people, but it appeared that his years of isolation had damaged that talent. Deceit snorted. Hell, if he didn’t know any better he would think Remus was attracted to him.
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Intensity Guarded
Kinktober Day 16 Prompts: Massage (receiving) ~ Forced nudity (around others) ~ Praise (verbal)
Fandom: Original [Auchendale Universe]
Tags: exophilia, massage, praise, Dom/sub, rough oral sex, angst
Pairing: Orc(m)/Human(f), Darnok/Lia, Gorvaal/Lia
[Authors Note: Due to my old wrist issue acting up pretty bad I ended up not finishing Kinktober. I still have the prompts and I will be doing them for NaNoWriMo, along with some other short stories I had planned. Once this is posted hopefully I can finish up the series soon, but there might be some other stories posted in between the chapters. That being said. Hang onto ya butts, it's gonna be a wild ride.]
After the event Lia was both physically and emotionally exhausted. Darnok had taken her back to the hotel that night and all thoughts of the word Taledras was pushed from her mind as he showed his appreciation for her throughout the night. There was a level of passion, intensity, even possessiveness to the way Darnok took her that night. It went beyond their usual scene play, even beyond how their sex normally felt. If Lia didn’t know better, she would think there was a level of desperation to it, something she had never felt from him before.
There was no sleep to be had, even though she was tired to her core, she could not say no to Darnok when he expressed his need to have her. The sun was streaming through the curtains as Lia fell back against the pillows exhausted. She wasn’t sure how she was supposed to drive home after this, and she honestly felt like she could sleep for a week once she got there. She smiled at Darnok who had the strangest look in his eyes.
If Lia wasn’t mistaken he looked worried or afraid, but that made no sense to her and she just leaned up giving him a kiss before scooting out of the bed and hobbling to the bathroom to get clean. If she had work the next day, she would have thought about complaining that she could barely move. As it was, she honestly would do it again if given the chance. Being so thoroughly fucked put her in a great mood even if her body protested.
The shower was quick, she didn’t want to hog all the hot water and knew it was probably past time for Darnok to leave. She dressed in the spare clothes she brought and waited for him to finish. He took a little longer than expected but Lia was all smiles when he stepped out of the bathroom. His body was always a sight to take in, and freshly showered was no exception. Even in a casual and relaxed state he was impressive. So very handsome and sexy. It had changed how Lia saw men. None could really compare to him and she had a hard time finding humans attractive at all anymore.
With her lover standing before her, Lia wrapped her arms around his waist and looked up at him with a smile, placing a small kiss on his hairy chest and nuzzling her face there. His arms around her felt perfect and right and Lia found she did not want to let go. Part of her was tempted to invite him to her home, but that was a line she still wasn’t sure she could cross.
“I know you need to leave, and I need to get home, but this really was wonderful.” Lia smiled and tugged Darnok down so she could kiss him.
Darnok stroked her face and kissed her forehead. “I can’t wait to see you again, it might be a couple weeks, I will have to check our schedule again.”
“That's ok. I know we sometimes have to take longer breaks. I don’t mind.” Lia laughed. “I may need the time off after all that.”
Darnok chuckled and hugged Lia picking her up. Even as worry filled him and threatened to overwhelm him. He was waiting for the other shoe that he knew was coming. For now he had to do his best to pretend everything was ok as he braced himself for the inevitable fall out. Every time he was with Lia it made him question some of his life choices. There was a part of him, a small part but it was getting louder every day, that wanted to forget his life and run away with her.
Lia meant so much more to him than he was willing to admit. It was well past too far and he knew the mistakes he had already made. The promises he had already broken. Yet there was something about Lia that made him willing to compromise himself. This last event threatened to destroy the careful balance he had created and the way others looked at Lia, it drove him mad. Now, more than ever, he could lose her. The idea of anyone having her this way, in any way, it made something ugly rise up inside of him.
Jealousy? Possessiveness? Darnok wasn’t sure what to name it, but both words fit. He wanted Lia to be his and only his. Yet he knew this desire to be unfair. Mostly to her. He had longed to tell her the truth, to be honest with her, but the way she looked at him. She adored him, he could see it in her eyes. The truth would take that away. She would mean less to him, and eventually she would move on to someone who could actually give her everything. Not just as a dominant, but as a partner.
Darnok knew the hug had probably gone on a little too long, but he was reluctant to let her go. He smiled and kissed her again, letting it linger, wanting to take her right back to that bed and have her all over again, but he couldn’t.
“Oh Lia, you are such a little temptress. If I don’t let you go now, I never will”
“Well, we could stay?” Lia offered
Darnok could see the small bit of hope in her eyes and he hated knowing he had to crush it. “If I could Lia, we would already be back in that bed. You in my arms, your body against mine.”
“I know, I know, we both have lives outside of this. Maybe in a few months we can take another vacation? Or next year?”
That was a plan he could get behind. If he didn’t do it too often, it could be easily worked into his schedule. “That is a perfect idea, but it will have to wait, we haven’t been back from the last one long enough I am afraid. But I can start planning. Did you want to help or should it be a surprise?”
She was so cute when concentrating and Darnok couldn’t stop smiling at her. It was clear that Lia was really putting thought into the question and not just jumping at an answer. Weighing the options. Both had clear benefits and either worked for him, he was curious what she would choose.
“You know what. As much as I love to plan things and I want to feel like I have some control, even a little. I think I want you to surprise me.” Lia admitted seeming surprised with her own answer.
“Then I will surprise you. Though we have plenty of time. It is ok if you change your mind, but you can’t change it once any tickets have been purchased. I will let you know before I start booking things that way we can revisit ok?”
Darnok stroked her face and smiled when she agreed. Watching her grab her bag and walk out was hard, but he knew he had to let her. It was getting close to check out time and as it was, he would be late getting back home. Something he was sure to hear about once there.
When she got home Lia was too tired to think and she forced herself to eat something before crawling into bed. Her sleep schedule was a mess after that and it took her a week to straighten it back out. It also took about that long for that nagging feeling in her head to have a voice and she suddenly remembered what the orc had said. What was a Taledras and how did Darnok have one.
Was it something significant? Well, she had a computer and the internet so she would just look it up. It sounded elvish, so she assumed it was something important or at least expensive. Though the more she searched it seemed like it was a person, or people. An influential and old fae family had the last name Taledras, so she had been close with the elvish but not quite. Maybe it was a political thing and he had one in his pocket. That would be something. Having someone from an influential fae family owing you meant you had power and a lot of it.
Lia did feel a little guilty. As tempted as she had been in the past, she never looked Darnok up. She didn’t want to invade his privacy. If he wanted her to know something he would tell her and she understood him wanting to keep some of his life separate. Now she was prying and while it didn’t feel good, that little nagging voice wouldn’t let her stop.
The search continued turning up information that only led to more questions. She only had to assume it was political. She was ready to stop her search until she saw a picture. One with Darnok in it. He looked so incredibly handsome in his suit, striking really, standing there posed. Though she felt a twinge when she looked closer. At first the woman next to him just appeared to be standing by him, but upon inspection Lia could see her arm hooked around his.
The woman was very clearly fae. Tall, with a lithe form. Her eyes seemed otherworldly, almost glowing. The delicate almost crystal looking antlers sprouting from her head. She didn’t even appear to be standing in the photo, more floating, but that was probably Lia’s imagination. She was beyond what a word like beautiful could convey and Lia’s heart began to break. There was a familiarity with how the woman had her arm looped in Darnok’s. It was clear that they were a couple by the way they stood, the way the photo was framed. There was no caption to indicate their relationship, but Lia could feel it just by looking at the photo.
This was what Darnok was hiding. This was what he was keeping separate. Lia had long suspected that he was in a relationship, but the trip and everything after made her rethink that. Now she was back to being lost and confused. If he was in a relationship, then why did he still go to the club? What kind of relationship did he have that allowed this. It had to, and small things started to make sense.
He must have some kind of agreement with her. Something that allowed him to continue with her, but it was still confusing and it hurt. By the gods above and below it hurt. Lia pushed away from her computer and walked out to her living room just sitting on her couch as her mind ran circles in her head. She stared at the wall for hours, just thinking, just letting her mind wander over every conversation she and Darnok had.
All the signs had been there, all the little things. It was why she had suspected that he was in a relationship in the first place. All of his little hesitations, the way he kept her at emotional arms length. How he sometimes spoke to her. Lia was his sub, yes, but that was all. He didn’t love her, it was just sex. Domination and sex.
The sun was rising, peeking through the windows. Lia had not slept. She only sat on her couch, her mind racing as her thoughts swirled. She was more hurt than angry, but the anger was there. The anger was easier and she gripped it hard. If sex was all it was, then sex was all it would ever be. Lia had to find a way to accept that and move on. Clearly Darnok was not who she thought he was and she had to find a way to heal.
First, she had to let him know that she knew, but what if she was wrong. What if her eyes were seeing things that weren’t there. Maybe it wasn’t a relationship and she was just looking for evidence of something already convinced she would find it so her mind filled in the gaps. Yes she suspected he was in a relationship, but really she had no proof. Considering everything she knew of Darnok it was possible the woman was a business partner of some sort or just someone who was powerful like he was.
Lia had learned a little about Darnok during her search and he was indeed quite rich and powerful. She didn’t understand most of it and wanted to retain some privacy so she did not dig. It was possible it was a social thing, something where powerful families simply did things together. Maybe being seen together was all that was needed and there really was nothing there.
Somehow, out of sheer desperation and a need to protect herself. Lia had managed to calm herself down and convince herself that the relationship she imagined was just that, one she imagined. She would give Darnok the chance to be honest with her and if he wasn’t in a relationship then maybe there was still a chance for them. He did want to take her on vacation, there was no way he would do that if he were already taken.
Being sleep deprived helped. Lia managed to push enough of her stress out of her mind to take a hot bath and a nap, waking up feeling somewhat refreshed but melancholy. A feeling that managed to linger the next few days as she went through the motions of work and life. The weekend was approaching quickly and for once Lia was not enthusiastic. Something her coworkers noticed but said nothing about.
By the time the weekend arrived she was looking for any excuse that she could use to get her out of going to the club, but nothing sounded real enough and she knew Darnok would easily see through her lies. She wasn’t ready to confront him, to tell him she snooped or about what she had found and where her mind went. There was a small part of her convinced that the relationship was real and she was just trying to protect herself. If she never confronted him, then she never had to worry about reality and everything would be ok.
Arriving at the club Lia felt strangely at ease and found it calming somehow. She stepped into the lounge and had a drink while she chatted with Lucien, Zane, and Ember. Everything seemed normal and Lia felt calmer than she had in days. Leaning on Ember and laughing while Zane tried to get Lucien to join in with the laughter. It was fun, and even when Darnok showed up, Lia had expected all the fun to die but it didn’t. Instead it felt normal. As if nothing was different at all.
Lia sat with Darnok, smiling. They chatted quietly as people passed in and out of the lounge. She turned when Lucien spoke, addressing them both.
“So what is on the menu today? I know we had a delightful time at the event, but small scenes can be just as good, or are we just going to sit in the lounge and talk all night?”
“Well, Gorvaal will be coming by tonight. I had promised him a scene with Lia here. I am not sure if it will be public or not.”
Lia didn’t remember anything about doing a scene with Gorvaal. The other orc was attractive, but she barely knew him. Maybe all the stress had made her forget something they had planned and Lia felt a little bad. She wanted to disagree, find a way to get out of it, but she didn’t want to be a bad sub. Didn’t want to give Darnok a reason to be disappointed in her.
Instead she remained silent and looked around the lounge to see if the other orc was there. It was possible he wasn’t a VIP so they would need to leave the lounge to meet him. For now she tried to relax but couldn’t seem to.
“What scene were we going to do?” Lia asked
Darnok smiled and stroked her cheek. “Gorvaal was so impressed by you at the event he insisted on having some time with you. You are to be fully nude for the scene, that was something he would not budge on, but I know you prefer to take your experiences slowly when they are new to you. He will touch you, but I have made it clear that there will be no sex unless you really want it.”
Lia felt relief wash over her. She would have at least a little control over what was happening in the scene. Being naked wasn’t so bad, but she wasn’t sure why it was insisted upon if she didn’t need to have sex. Of course non-sexual nudity had been a theme in their scenes a few times so it wasn’t entirely unusual. Though it made her wonder what Gorvaal could possibly want if not sex?
Soon enough Lia would find out when Darnok led her from the lounge to one of the back rooms on the other side of the club. It was similar to the room they had used that first night, but set up a little differently. Gorvaal was already there, sitting in a chair with a charming smile. He really was quite handsome, differently so from Darnok, but his frame was just as powerful.
Gorvaal stood and greeted them both. “I am honored that you would allow me a scene with your lovely little sub. She was a surprise to me, that is certain. I did not know humans could handle orcish lovers so well. I am impressed with you little one.”
Lia was flattered and felt her skin flush at the compliment. She felt weirdly shy, considering that she had done scenes with others before, this felt different somehow and she felt kind of like she did the first time she met Darnok. She could feel her skin heating up with the flush that was covering her now. For some reason her nipples were already hard. Maybe she just had a thing for orcs. He wasn’t Darnok, but Gorvaal was incredibly handsome.
He stood just as tall as Darnok, and seemed just as broad. While Dar was a bit softer around the middle, it seemed there wasn’t a bit of fat on Gorvaal’s muscular frame. His thick hair was long and pulled back from his face. Some of it was loose down his back, the rest was in braids with decorations in it. He was too clothed for Lia to get a better look at his body, but his voice. Did all orcs have voices so deep you felt it in your core? It certainly seemed like it. She was certain just listening to the two of them talk could probably get her there. Maybe it was something they would be willing to test out.
As it was, Lia was uncertain what would be expected of her and couldn’t seem to get past her nerves enough to speak. She let Darnok handle things, which wasn’t all that common. Yes he was the dom, but when they were working out a scene she was always free to give her input. For some reason Lia struggled to speak. She felt shy, nervous, uncertain. As handsome as Gorvaal was, something about him put her a little on edge. It was probably just his size and how intense and formal he seemed compared to how relaxed Darnok was.
Darnok could sense that Lia was nervous, or more it was just obvious to him. He knew her body language well and he wasn't sure why, other than Gorvaal being an orc. Everyone else she had done a scene with was smaller than him except Lucien who was taller but more lithe. Or it was just that Gorvaal was new and not someone she was used to seeing in the club the way the others were. He placed a hand on her shoulder and squeezed gently.
“Lia, be a good girl and strip down for us, then I will help you onto the table ok?”
Lia looked around the room and noticed there was a massage table off to one side. She nodded, not wanting to disobey Darnok or seem like an unruly sub so early on. Stepping away from the two orcs Lia moved over near the storage basket at the back of the room. She noticed both males followed and glanced at them before beginning to strip. She dropped her shoes in the basket, then tugged off her shirt. Lia made a show of stripping each bit of clothing off and running her hands over her body as she revealed it to both the orcs watching her. She could see the hunger in Darnok’s eyes mirrored by Gorvaal and Lia felt powerful and sexy. To have two strong, and clearly powerful individuals desiring her was a heady thought and it helped her to forget some of her worries from before.
Once stripped she moved over to the table, looking for a way to get up on it that wouldn’t make her look graceless and clumsy. Darnok stepped over and helped her onto the table, lifting her and placing a kiss on her cheek as he let her get settled in. Lia felt cherished and loved in that moment. Nuzzling at his face she settled on the table laying face down, assuming that was what she needed to do, but didn’t relax just incase she was wrong.
“Good girl.” Darnok stroked a large hand over her ass, giving it a gentle squeeze. “I am going to sit in that chair over there. You can call me if you need me, but Gorvaal is going to be the one touching you. He is going to give you a nice massage. I hope you let yourself enjoy it Lia.”
She lifted her head and looked at him curiously. Not sure what he meant by that. Did he think she was going to turn down a massage just because she didn’t really know the orc giving it, or was there more to this than she realized? Settling back down, she decided not to look this particular gift horse too hard in the mouth. As far as she was concerned this was going to be an easy and relaxing session, something she really needed.
A pleasant hum escaped her as she felt large warm hands stroke over her skin. Gorvaal was just petting her gently, his hands teasing her skin lightly. It felt nice, warming her a bit. She heard a small click and figured he had some massage oil. When it hit her skin she was pleasantly surprised that it was nice and hot. It helped relax her even more as she felt the heated oil slide across her skin. It wasn’t as intense as hot wax, but still warm enough that it had just the edge of a sting to it, something Lia liked.
The feel of Gorvaal’s big strong hands stroking over her skin made her shiver a bit. He was gentle, and not gripping her too hard as he worked over her back and shoulders. Slowly the pressure increased until she was moaning. He was strong enough that there was just the barest edge of pain, but it hurt in a good way and Lia found herself relaxing deeply. Her little sounds of pleasure seemed loud in the otherwise silent room, but she was too relaxed now to feel self conscious about it.
“So beautiful, such soft skin, you are an exquisite little human.”
As his hands slid down, Lia found herself enjoying it even more. When he gently groped and massaged her rear she had to fight the urge to lift her hips a bit in preparation for a spanking. Slowly she began to feel arousal as his hands smoothed over her thighs and she spread her legs more, revealing herself to him. Her calves hurt the most and his firm massage helped ease the soreness there, by the time he hit her feet, Lia was practically boneless.
As Gorvaal’s hands moved back up her thighs, Lia spread her legs more. This time he massaged her inner thighs, and she could feel his thumbs brushing her outer lips. The touch was light, it almost felt accidental until he did it again a bit more firmly. This time his thumbs made her lips and folds part slightly to reveal her opening. By the third time, she could feel and hear how wet she was just by the sound and her face flushed. Now she could hear his breathing, it was heavier and she squirmed as one thumb swiped over her wet folds before his hands pulled away from her.
“Roll onto your back, now it is time for the other side.” Gorvaal rumbled.
Lia obeyed, but it was a little bit of a struggle to move as she was almost too relaxed. She managed to catch a glimpse of him licking his thumb and her cheeks flushed even darker. Settled onto her back Lia looked up at him with curious eyes. Her legs were now together again, but her hard nipples made her continued arousal obvious. She wiggled a bit on the table as Gorvaal’s eyes roamed over her body. The hunger in those eyes was even more intense than before and Lia felt her breath quicken just slightly.
“So well behaved, such beauty. You are so sweet, so desirable, do you have any idea what you are doing to me?”
This time he started at her feet, working his way up her calves again, and over the tops of her thighs. His thumbs brushed over her mound briefly, but he moved onto her hips and gently up her stomach not using much pressure at all. Once he reached her breasts she noticed that he was aroused. Straining against his pants as his thumbs brushed over her nipples. She moaned and arched into his touch slightly, but forced herself still. She wasn’t sure what reactions were allowed and wanted to look to Darnok for guidance.
Turning her head she saw him, watching her with the most intense gaze she had ever seen. There was something raw, almost possessive in how he watched them. His eyes lingered on her body, but then they would glance at Gorvaal and if Lia didn’t know better she would swear there was something like jealousy in Darnok’s eyes.
Gorvaal’s touch distracted her as his hands roamed back down to her thighs after he teased her nipples. She found herself spreading her legs at his gentle nudging and his thumbs rubbed over her folds again. This time he stroked just a little more firmly and Lia could feel herself tingling and wanting to arch into it. The more he rubbed her the more her clit began to throb. As he pushed her legs open a little more she whimpered. His thick fingers only massaged her outer lips and folds. He never pushed inside and he didn’t rub her clit.
“Ah, yes, perfect, you obey even the smallest, most subtle of signals. Your enjoyment and pleasure arouse me little one. Do not hide how you are feeling. Let me see you, see all of you.” Gorvaal lavished Lia with praise as he rubbed over her body.
Lia began to feel needy and was close to begging but stopped herself. She turned and looked at Darnok. His hand was palming his crotch as he watched them and Lia felt her desire spike even higher. This time she couldn’t stop her hips from arching off the table when Gorvaal’s thumbs spread her folds open. Lia could feel her own arousal drip from her core and out of her. Her eyes were shut tight for a moment as she tried to calm herself.
Opening them she saw Darnok stroking his cock and she moaned loudly, spreading her legs open even further as her clit throbbed. She whimpered and looked up at Gorvaal who was watching her curiously. She chewed her bottom lip and lowered her hips back to the table trying not to seem as desperate as she felt. His gentle deep laugh both warmed her and made her feel a little sheepish.
“Eager little one? I did not want to push too far. Would you like for me to do more?” Gorvaal turned to look at Darnok. “I think he would enjoy your pleasure. I will only use my hands, as promised.”
Lia hesitated and then nodded. She was blushing harder now. Something about Gorvaal making her feel shy and hew. She honestly expected him to go straight for it but he didn’t. He continued to just rub over her hips and thighs, his thumbs occasionally rubbing her outer lips spreading them a bit. She was confused and her expression mirrored her thoughts.
“Look at him little one, look at your dominant. He needs to see your face. You will get no pleasure until you do.”
Turning her head she looked at Dar, his gaze so intense she felt almost burned by it. Her breath quickened as she watched him, watching them. His large hand stroking his thick cock slowly. His arousal and need is clear to her. She wanted him, she needed him inside her. She couldn’t stop the whimper in her throat as just seeing him like this made her core clench hard.
Her whimpers turned to moans as Gorvaal’s hands pushed her thighs open wider. This time he used his fingers to stroke over her slick folds and finally brushed near her clit. He didn’t even have to touch it directly and she was arching off the table. He rubbed around it, only grazing the sides gently. She had been teased before but never like this.
Gorvaal took as much care massaging her intimately as he had done for the rest of her body. There did not seem to be any rush and he was clearly content to continue to tease her. His thumbs rubbing her folds as he used his fingers to slide on either side of her clit. Fearing punishment Lia kept her gaze on Darnok. Though she wanted to close her eyes and arch into the touch, or beg for more.
When Gorvaal finally ran his thumb over her clit, Lia almost came. She was close, right on the edge. Her hips arched up hard, and she cried out loudly. Her eyes closed for just a moment, but thankfully she was not punished. She watched as Darnok sped up, clearly close as well. She held back, waiting, not only for him, but for permission to cum. She wasn’t sure she was allowed to cum. Though she would disobey just to hit her release at the same time as Dar.
She needed more, wanted more and Lia whimpered and rolled her hips into Gorvaal’s gentle yet firm touch. She was panting slightly from the effort of not cumming each time he brushed her clit with his thumb. Each touch was a bit more firm and lasted just a bit longer.
“I am so impressed with you. I can tell you are on edge, ready for release. You have neither begged nor cum without permission yet. Are you waiting for your dom to give you permission?”
Lia whimpered and glanced up at Gorvaal then back at Darnok. She wasn’t sure if she was allowed to answer and her distress became clear.
“Lia my darling. You may cum when your body is ready. I give you permission. I love seeing your pleasure. It arouses every part of me.” Darnok growled as he stroked himself, holding back his own release. “Cum for us my dearest. Show us your pleasure.”
There was no stopping it now. Lia was on edge already, her pleasure reaching its peak as she felt almost overwhelmed by the experience. Watching Darnok but not able to touch him was a new kind of torture. Being uncertain if she could cum but feeling the need reminded her of the wager, a torture she wasn’t ready to repeat but did enjoy in small doses. When Gorvaal’s thumb rubbed up and pressed on her clit she couldn’t stop herself.
Lia arched off the table and came with a loud cry. Her thighs were shaking as she felt herself squirting just a little bit. Her eyes opened in time to see Darnok find his own release, his grunt of pleasure making her tingle. Lia was desperate for more. One orgasm simply wasn’t enough. She still felt her core clenching, her clit throbbing as she arched again, needing to feel more. Turning her head she caught Darnok’s eyes. She could see that he too was still aroused. Turning she looked up at Gorvaal and saw that his arousal was probably more intense than her’s or Darnok’s as he was the only one to not find release. She blushed as he licked his fingers with a smile.
“What a lovely sweet taste you have Lia, I wonder if you would allow me more?”
She looked to Darnok who nodded and she spread her legs for Gorvaal. She was a bit surprised at his enthusiasm. Only a few had ever been so eager to do this. Most men from her past had to be convinced or bribed into it which dampened the pleasure. But like Darnok, Gorvaal seemed to genuinely enjoy the act, moaning as he lapped over her folds and pushed his tongue inside of her.
Soon she was rolling her hips against his face as he licked and sucked on her clit. It wouldn't take her long to find her release this was. She was still eager, still needed penetration, but Gorvaal’s tongue was damn near magical. She hadn’t felt anything quite like it, heavy and thick and so flexible.
When he sucked on her clit Lia was lost, crying out again with her release. Her hips arching and rolling against his face, her fluids coating his chin as she begged for more. She whimpered and whined loudly when he pulled away and reached for him without thinking. Movement from the corner of her eye caught her attention as Lia turned and saw Darnok stand.
“We have been rude dearest Lia. You have enjoyed yourself, but our guest has not. Perhaps you can show him just how talented your own oral skills are?”
Lia could see how eager Gorvaal looked. She was still aroused and if she did this maybe she would be rewarded with penetration. She nodded, looking at both orcs. “How do you need me?”
“Here, let me help you.” Darnok had removed his clothing as they had been speaking, clearly coming to a decision.
He walked over to her on the table and gently tugged her up so that her head was hanging off of it. Adjusting the height of the table so that either orc could easily penetrate her throat. Darnok gestured for Gorvaal to come over.
“I know you saw her performance at the event, and I know how tempting it is. A human that can take an orc in their mouth. I assure you. She can. Go ahead. I know her signals, I will watch to make sure she stays safe.”
Darnok gestured to Gorvaal to go ahead and remove his clothes and step to the front of the table. He kept a close eye on Lia, wanting to be sure that she was ok with what was happening. She had seemed nervous before, which was a concern, but now she seemed eager. That made something ugly rise within him. As much as he loved watching her pleasure, there was a bit of a twist within him seeing someone else cause it.
Made worse by the fact that it was another orc. He felt that jealous possessive feeling rise in him again, knowing full well how much trouble it meant that he felt it at all. He was trying to fix this, correct it before it became too late, and this was the only way he knew how. Swallowing his own jealousy, Darnok braced himself to watch his Lia be used for pleasure by another.
Keeping a close eye on Lia, Dar watched as Gorvaal rubbed the tip of his cock against her lips. A slow tease to get her to open up. It was different. Watching someone else do this. Even if he had seen it before. She had performed oral sex on others, he had watched, and it hadn’t made him feel like this. Maybe it was because Gorvaal was a powerful orc, someone with high standing among the clans, someone that would be considered a rival had he been courting Lia. Either way, Darnok had to work to keep his expression neutral and his emotions in check. If Lia Sensed any distress from him she could unintentionally be hurt.
Lia stayed in position, despite it making her a little dizzy to have her head like this. She knew this position would make it easier to take the orc in her throat and she wanted to show Darnok what a good sub she was. Also, if she was really pushed to admit it, Lia was a little excited. This was her first time with an orc that wasn’t Dar and she was curious how it would make her feel. If all of her excitement was tied into her emotional attachment, or if maybe she just had a thing for orcs.
When Gorvaal teased her lips with his cock, she opened her mouth obediently and lapped at the head of his cock. Her tongue sliding over the tip, tasting the wetness there. It was salty, tangy, a taste she strangely enjoyed and only wanted more of. When his cock started to slide into her mouth Lia squirmed ever so slightly. She was still aroused, still wanted more for herself, and she knew this would only make that worse.
Lia had found that she loved doing this, taking her partners in orally. She had a bit of a growing fetish for it and when her and Darnok practiced to get her to take more, it always got her so excited. This was no exception and she was thrilled to be able to show off her skills. She had not been able to take much when she first met Darnok, now, she could take him to the base of his cock, and hold it. There was something about it, something that sparked arousal in her. To be able to take so much, it almost seemed impossible.
As Gorvaal pushed into her throat slowly Lia moaned around him, knowing the soft vibrations would tease and excite him, well she hoped they would, they always did for Darnok. She could almost sense his excitement with how he paused, and the grunt that escaped him. Soon he was pushing in less gently and she knew to stay relaxed and breathe carefully through her nose.
Lia was patient, remaining still as Gorvaal carefully worked his cock in and out of her mouth. She could easily take more, but it was clear he was trying to be careful. Wanting to show off a bit she swirled her tongue around the head when he pulled back, and moaned louder when he pushed in. She sucked on his cock the deeper he pushed and swallowed once he was in her throat, so he could feel it tightening around him. She would have smirked when his hips snapped forward suddenly, but her mouth was far too stretched. Clearly she had pushed his control a bit and he was now struggling to keep from getting too rough.
Darnok smiled slightly as he watched his companion struggling to maintain his control while using Lia’s mouth. He knew from experience just how difficult it was not to give into that desire to thrust. How hot and wet her mouth was, how tight her throat felt. His own cock was hard, listening to her moan, remembering how it felt. He wanted that for himself, but he could be patient. Placing a hand on her thigh he squeezed, letting her know he was there, stroking her skin, praising her without words.
“Don’t worry Gorvaal, Lia can take quite a bit. I am proud of how far she has come. When we first met all she could take was the first few inches, now, she can take all of me. It isn’t always easy, but we are working towards that. She trains herself for this. Go ahead, test her skills, I am watching carefully, I will let you know when you need to ease up.” Darnok brushed his fingers over Lia’s mound, feeling her wetness without even having to touch her folds. “Trust me Gorvaal, she enjoys this.”
Taking those words as permission, Gorvaal pushed his cock further into Lia’s throat with a groan. Not quite all the way, but more than half. He was shocked, even though he had seen her take cock before, it was still a surprise to feel it himself. Even orcish women struggled to take this much. He wasn’t small, if anything he was like Darnok and above average for their race. His thighs tensed as he pushed in just a little more. Her throat was so tight and each time she swallowed around him he thought he might lose his mind. The constricting tightness of her throat was unlike anything he had ever known. All it did was increase his lust and desire for this human. He wanted more than her mouth, he wanted all of her.
Slowly Gorvaal began thrusting, his movement hesitant as he still feared harming Darnok’s pet. Though he was certain if he called her that the woman would take offense. It was the reality of what she was though. Her position in his life. Gorvaal wondered if he could coax her into being more open with him, of offering herself to him as well. He craved a sweet little pet like Lia, and if she ever decided to leave Darnok, he would gladly take her for his own. His thoughts faded as pleasure began to over take his mind. His thrusts growing more intense and erratic. His need to rut starting to take over. He wanted to test her limits and found himself doing so.
As she moaned around him, sending pleasant vibrations through the shaft of his cock, Gorvaal finally gave in and snapped his hips forward, pushing his entire length into her mouth, his heavy balls resting on her face. Looking down he could see the bulge in her throat, the outline of his cock sitting heavily and deeply inside her. He held himself there, in awe of her abilities. Only when he felt her struggle slightly did he pull out to the tip, letting her breath.
“Fuck me, that is.. That is the most impressive thing I think I have ever seen.” Gorvaal’s voice was husky and he knew he would cum soon.
Lia took a few deep breaths, proud of herself for taking as much as she did and holding it for so long. Her vision had gone a little swimmy right before he pulled out, but somehow that just aroused her more. She could feel herself dripping and each time Darnok touched her, she thought she might cum. His fingers were always so close to where she needed the stimulation, but he always seemed to miss her clit, or he was avoiding it on purpose. She couldn’t see his face, so she wasn’t sure if he was teasing her intentionally, or just touching her absently to remind her that he was there and watching over her.
It was hard not to feel pleased with herself, hearing Gorvaal finally lose his cool a bit. He had always been so proper when he spoke, it made her just a little giddy to know she was getting to him. His next thrust into her mouth let her know just how close to that edge his control really was. He thrust almost his entire length in, and it took her a moment to adjust, but she did easily. Swallowing around him and moaning as he pushed deeper and deeper. The feel of his heavy balls resting on her face aroused her more as he finally pushed his full length into her throat and held there. It was hard to breathe and she felt light headed but it just made her want more.
Darnok was watching carefully, knowing that there was a fine line between what Lia could handle and what might injure her. Seeing her take Gorvaal so deep, the way his cock made her throat bulge. As envious as he was, it was also arousing. He dipped his fingers between her legs feeling her slickness, she was wet and hot, he could tell she would orgasm from this with just a little help. Sliding a finger inside of her, Darnok hummed as he spoke in a deep soothing voice. Praising Lia when she did well seemed to encourage her to try even harder.
“You are doing so good little Lia, pleasing our friend so much. Oh how beautiful you look like this. His cock so deep in your throat. I love seeing you this way, I love seeing how far you have come. Please show our friend just how good you are, how perfect you can be.”
It was hard to watch, as Gorvaal began to thrust into her throat in earnest. Not because Darnok feared for Lia, but because he wanted her all to himself. Something he had to break, a need he had to shed. That didn’t make it easy, and he made sure to not let his mind wander too much. Orcs were strong as as Gorvaal began to lose himself, Lia was in a bit more danger. She was handling it so well though, and Darnok couldn’t be more proud.
Lia struggled a bit to breathe as Gorvaal moved faster and harder. Darnok was usually more gentle with her while doing this, but for some reason, this rough treatment excited her. It made her moan louder, deeper around him, which only increased his thrust. Her core clenched around the finger inside of her, and her hips raised up as she felt herself getting closer to release as Gorvaal fucked her throat. She moaned loudly when he hit particularly deep, his balls slapping against her face.
Her eyes rolled back a bit as her vision got a little dim around the edges. She could breathe, but not as well, and the lightheadedness only made her core clench and her clit tingle even more. She was so close, she could feel it. She wanted to cum, and she wanted Gorvaal to cum in her throat.
When he thrust forward hard, holding his cock as deep in her throat as he could. Lia came, crying out around him as she felt his cock swell in her throat. Even though she came without added stimulation, Darnoks thumb pressed against her clit drawing her orgasm out, as Gorvaal roared with his orgasm. His cock swelling more and pumping cum deep in her throat. She could barely breathe and honestly thought she might pass out, but it was one of the most intense orgasms she had experienced and Lia felt herself wanting more.
Gorvaal pulled out suddenly and Lia coughed and gasped for air when he did. She thought she heard talking but it was too far away, muffled. She felt incredible and was smiling, mumbling, not really sure of what she was trying to say. She felt strong arms around her and a warm wet cloth on her face. She leaned into the strong body holding her, and the world went dark.
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