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#i ended up re-reading the whole of 'A Marriage of Convenience' and laughing at my own shit jokes all over again LMAO. is that bad
hollyand-writes · 3 years
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Things I should be doing this afternoon: Writing my fanfic 
Things I’m actually doing this afternoon: Re-reading my fanfic
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beansbeware · 3 years
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Beans’ Bagginshield Recs
Here it is! My first rec list eight years since I first started shipping Bagginshield. When this lockdown started (and ended and started again) I found myself re-reading OG/classics and discovering new ones. Sifting through my AO3 history I realized I have read and already forgotten so much fic over the years. For a while, I though the ship had run its course but as we can see now, Bagginshield lives! Check back for updates as I discover (and remember) more fics. Pay attention to the tags and trigger warnings! 
AU
I Sang In My Chains Like The Sea by orphan_account for lincesque, IronPanda
In which Bilbo is a Jaeger pilot candidate, and Middle Earth stands on the brink of destruction. (Pacific Rim AU) [Wasn’t sure how this one worked but man it did]
At the Turn of the Year by northerntrash
They say that strange things live in the woods, fair folk and things more spirit than man; don't step between the old oaks, parents mutter to their children, or they might find you, and eat you. Thorin never believed that, but now winter is settling into his bones, the shadows are growing longer through the hoar frost, and he is lost among the trees.
And it was there that Thorin met him, that strange, laughing creature, walking barefoot through the bracken.
Canon-ish
Homeward Bound by perkynurples for 61Below
His life slips away from him on an elven boat carrying him overseas, and there is one last journey Bilbo Baggins must take if he truly means to arrive home.
Sansûkh by determamfidd
The battle was over, and Thorin Oakenshield awoke, naked and shivering, in the Halls of his Ancestors.
The novelty of being dead fades quickly, and watching over his companions soon fills him with grief and guilt. Oddly, a faint flicker of hope arises in the form of his youngest kinsman, a Dwarf of Durin's line with bright red hair.
(Follows the story of the War of the Ring).
The Great Shire Conspiracy by Avelera for Emsiecat
Ten years later, Bilbo can't even go to the Green Dragon without a dwarven tourist buying him a beer and sobbing over Bilbo's great tragic love affair with Thorin Oakenshield. Which would all be quite touching and heartbreaking, if not for one little thing...
Dark (generally not a fan but this one made the cut)
Pain-Bearer by lilithiumwords (unfinished)
In an alternate reality, Erebor was never taken by Smaug, and the War of Dwarves and Orcs never happened. The Orcs invaded the Shire, slaughtering hundreds and taking countless more as slaves. Bilbo is slave to Azog, the Dwarf King's mortal enemy... until the Dwarf King rescues him.
Dwarves! in the Shire
Selling to Hobbits by HildyJ 
Exiled from his kingdom and living on the mercy of others, Thorin is determined to make his own way in the world for him and his family. And the annual Summer Fair in Hobbiton sounds like the best place to sell enough of his crafted goods to do just that.
Oak and Mistletoe by HildyJ (series)
After a life dominated by a strange form of sickness, Thorin is sent to the Shire to seek a cure only Bilbo Baggins can offer.
Erebor - Nope, Never Fell 
A Most Sensible Idea by HildyJ
Bilbo Baggins isn't sure about this. Not one bit.
Frodo is definitely too young to enter into an arranged marriage with a dwarven king called Thorin Oakenshield. It's a good thing that Bilbo is there to chaperone him through their courtship.
After all, there's no chance that a fussy hobbit bachelor would ever catch the eye of a king.
Signs and Meanings by HildyJ
It shouldn't matter to Thorin that the visiting hobbit cook doesn't speak his language. But it does.
Per Aspera by northerntrash
Deep in the dungeons of the Kingdom of Erebor, in an old, unused storeroom, lived a Hobbit.
In which Bilbo Baggins, a strangely successful thief, makes a mistake, and meets a Prince.
Erebor - Rebuilding
Mother-Tongue by northerntrash for HildyJ
Forget-me-not: a small flower, with four petals, which are normally found in shades of blue with a pink or white centre. These are traditional flowers of intent in the Shire, used to express true love, and remembrance.
In which Bilbo plans to leave Erebor, and Thorin tries to understand why.
Previous Engagements by Lunarflare14
After the Battle of Five Armies Thorin and Company have a new task: rebuilding their reclaimed home. Suddenly Bilbo finds himself up to his ears in responsibility and he surprises himself with how well he can navigate negotiations with elf dignitaries, farmers in Dale, and a dwarf king who has patience for neither.
But as Spring approaches a caravan from the Blue mountains brings something everyone had nearly forgotten: the dwarf woman Thorin promised his hand to many years ago.
Which is fine. It's all fine. It wasn't like Bilbo was falling in love with the king or anything.
That would be tragic.
And I'm Your Lionheart by Lee_Whimsy
Bilbo lingers in Erebor while Thorin recovers from his wounds, and soon finds himself caught up in politics, romance, and the occasional kidnapping. Ensemble cast. AU. Eventually Thorin/Bilbo.
Fix-Its (Gawd we need them)
An Expected Journey by MarieJacquelyn
For years Bilbo has written about his adventures and told stories about his dealings with dwarves and dragons. To most it seemed like fanciful nonsense but to Bilbo it was all very real. A weight followed him home from his travels, one called regret. Now in his final moments Bilbo has a choice to make – go quietly into death’s embrace or go back again and face all the fear and pain for the chance to make things right?
Of course, change is a fickle thing and not everything can be done again as Bilbo is about to find out. In the end, it may not only be salvation that he’s fighting for.
though the stars walk backward by baggvinshield, killaidanturner
Bilbo wakes, always in Erebor, with dark shadows to one side and the first light of a terrible dawn to the other.
An Expected Journey by MarieJacquelyn
For years Bilbo has written about his adventures and told stories about his dealings with dwarves and dragons. To most it seemed like fanciful nonsense but to Bilbo it was all very real. A weight followed him home from his travels, one called regret. Now in his final moments Bilbo has a choice to make – go quietly into death’s embrace or go back again and face all the fear and pain for the chance to make things right?
Of course, change is a fickle thing and not everything can be done again as Bilbo is about to find out. In the end, it may not only be salvation that he’s fighting for.
Over Your Shoulder by northerntrash
The battle is over, and the lost have been counted. There is too much death, too much blood, and in the middle of it sits one small Hobbit, left quite alone but for a body on the ground and the memory of what might have been. But he is a tenacious creature, and if there is one thing that he has learnt, it is not to give up hope.
In which Bilbo Baggins goes on one last journey, and doesn't come back alone.
Historical Setting
The Ghost And Mr Baggins by perkynurples
They say that everything can be cured by saltwater - sweat, tears or the sea. Bilbo Baggins chooses the last option, taking his recently orphaned nephew and moving to the charming Oak Cottage, overlooking England’s grislier shores. The house charms him instantly, and though he knows nothing at all about the sea, or about making ends meet on his own so far from everything he’s known his whole life for that matter, he’s quite determined to stay, and see his nephew get better, odd sounds in the night be damned. He’s living in a modern world, after all, and the nonsense he’s been hearing about the house being haunted by its former owner, the mysterious Captain Durin, is just silly superstition… isn’t it?
Hobbit! Thorin
I've Grown a Hedge Around My Heart by pibroch (littleblackdog)
Thorin Brandybuck, just recently come of age, still lives in his family’s smial in Buckland, with his parents and two younger siblings. Thorin is an odd duck amongst his relations and neighbours-- unsociable, grumpy, shy, and awkward. And beyond that, he looks rather strange even for a Bucklander, strongly favouring the thick, dark haired build of his Stoorish blood.
It defies all sense and reason why Bilbo Baggins, an exemplar of all the respectable traits Thorin lacked, would ever desire a friendship with him.
Bilbo, as Thorin discovers, is not always as sensible as he appears.
Marriage (or something like it)
An Unexpected Proposal by Eareniel
As Bilbo sat smoking in his empty hobbit hole, he couldn’t help but wonder – when did his life become so boring? Or better yet – when did his old life stop being enough?
He suspected the answer to that question lay somewhere around the time when he had refused Thorin Oakenshield’s offer of marriage.
Something Blue by Lapin
Thorin marries Bilbo after the Battle of Five Armies, a marriage of convenience, not love. Slowly, they must come to make the best of it, Bilbo resolves. After all, he's a Hobbit. They make the best of things.
Magical/Super Powers
On Adventures and Other Forms of Conduct Unbecoming of a Wizard by manic_intent for beingevil
For as long as even the old Gaffer could remember there had been a wizard living in the hill at Bag End, overlooking the Shire. As wizards went, this one wasn't the wandering sort, always out to lure gentle folk out onto nasty adventures, or even the powerful kind, the sort that lived in high towers, reaching out into the ways of the world.
Modern Setting
Old Stone, New Fires by northerntrash
Bilbo was not sure what he had expected when he had agreed to supervise the restoration of Erebor House, on the lonely tidal island in the North sea, but it was not this. The winters up here are cold and harsh, and there is a strange feeling on the air, thick with the brine of the sea and secrets to which he is not privy; there is some part of the long and troubled history of the place that has not been spoken of, a shadow between the broken family gravestones and the caves beneath the cliffs, dark and dangerous.
Perhaps it is all in Bilbo’s mind, but as the nights grow longer, he starts to doubt it, and as Thorin sinks ever deeper into black and incalculable moods, he will have to find what has been lost, before it takes them all.
For This by northerntrash
Thorin Durin had lived in his new flat for approximately eighty four minutes when things started to go terribly, terribly wrong. The wrongness came in the form of a package, delivered to his door, wrapped in brown paper and string, with a small tag wishing him a very sincere welcome to the building.
Nothing Gold Can Stay by perkynurples
Bilbo Baggins led a rather peaceful life, thank you very much, until an old acquaintance decided to turn it upside down, and he found himself agreeing to take a job that’s… let’s say not exactly up his alley, and might eventually cost him a little more than his treasured cozy lifestyle. Who would have thought tutoring a slightly menacing monarch’s more than slightly overbearing nephew could prove to be such an adventure?
Love-In-Idleness by perkynurples
Taking Bilbo Baggins, a successful movie actor who is only just getting used to the perks and intricacies of becoming A Face People Want To See, and putting him together with Thorin Oakenshield, with his very traditional (read: slightly backwards) ideas about what constitutes Real Art and Real Talent, might very well be viewed as just some clothead’s idea of a joke. But there are jokes, and then there are carefully calculated risks the size of controversial reproductions of classic Shakespearean plays - for Bilbo, it is the chance of a lifetime to prove himself to all those who have ever deemed him too one-dimensional to even attempt stage, while Thorin has the opportunity to get out of the rut that’s been hindering his career for so long now, and shine in a role worthy of his talent once again. That is if the two learn how to share the same space for more than ten minutes without wanting to tear each other’s hair out. The course of true love never did run smooth, after all…
If There Were Water by stickman
Bilbo Baggins might be in over his head. He’s purchased an old stone house atop a hill overlooking a city he doesn’t know, and plans to live quietly, largely ignoring the rest of the world. But it’s early April, the rainy season, and the roof leaks, and there's something strange about Bywater House that he can't quite figure out.
Thorin Oakenshield is in his fourth month of trying to reconcile his own grief with his failures at anything remotely resembling a competent single parent, living out of a shoebox flat with Fíli (seven, sullen, and stubborn as hell) and Kíli (five, resilient but cracking), working crap jobs and hating everything including himself.
Under the cover of rainy afternoons and sleepless nights, roof repairs and building restoration, Bilbo and Thorin try to figure out how one navigates isolation, and how one breaks out of it. Every step they manage to take forward finds them dragged back again; every question asked has too many answers, or too few. This is a story about living in a world where everyone is on their own, always, and how things go on.
How the West Was Won and Where It Got Us by stickman
Bilbo is a harried 1st year British literature Ph.D. (early 20th century fiction) who happens to have an interest in spatial narrative structures, a lack of time-management skills, and a tiny apartment with a lot of books and very little furniture. He’s stressed, always, and doesn't quite know where he belongs. He tells himself that really, this is, in fact, what he wants to be doing. But sometimes, as much as he loves books, he gets an urge to do something with his hands.
Thorin is a disgruntled M.Arch. 1 in his last year who can’t be arsed to shave and frightens his students, and, frankly, his profs, but his work is top-notch so no one can really say much. They can, however, bully him into running a hands-on design workshop on Saturday mornings, which is complete crap, because he’s used to drinking his Friday nights into oblivion so showing up at Milstein at 7:45 the next morning and trying to teach in a room of wall-to-wall windows as the sun rises is not at the top of his list. Besides, no one ever shows up.
Except one morning, someone does.
The Boy You Met (At The Coin Laundry) by Lee_Whimsy
Bilbo accidentally spends a summer in Ireland. One rainy day, Thorin appears in the hotel laundry room, naked and dripping wet and about to propose. (But not, unfortunately, to Bilbo.)
Gandalf, Thranduil, and a handful of Spanish footballers all guest-star.
Hooked On You by Chamelaucium
Thorin should have learnt not to trust his brother and sister by now.
Come with us on holiday, they’d said. It’ll be fun, they’d said. A nice break from work.
Yeah right. All this holiday had brought him was being knocked around the head, acute hay-fever, and the biggest, most ridiculous crush ever on the cute, golden-haired fishing instructor.
One-Sided Conversations by northerntrash
"Thank you for listening," Thorin said, getting to his feet. "I hope to be able to return the favour, one day."
The man on the bed didn't respond, but since he'd been in a coma for longer than Thorin had known him, that wasn't entirely surprising.
“One”/Soulmates
you lick your lips (you taste like years of being alone) by perkynurples for stopchasingflowers
Thorin Oakenshield was born without the longing, and has spent his whole life merely observing others as they pursued a feeling unknown to him until they finally found their One. He has made his peace with the prospect of being alone, and has been faring well enough, but little does he know the fates have a different story in store for him.
Things We Grow Together by serenbach
Dwarves are born with a bone-deep knowledge of their One, but Thorin stops feeling the pull of his after the dragon attacks Erebor. Needless to say, he is surprised, and not initially pleased, to find his One living behind a round green door decades later.
Hobbits find a seed that represents their innermost self and can offer it to someone else to plant. This creates a bond as strong as deep roots in the earth between them. It is just like Bilbo, after years of thinking that no one would want his, to offer his soul-seed to a dwarf that does not understand gardening metaphors.
But just because they have found each other does not make the quest to reclaim Erebor any easier, and in the end a sacrifice is still made.
Thorin has to trust in the strength of the bond between himself and his One, because otherwise he will never believe that the sacrifice was worth it.
Colour-struck by northerntrash
Soul mates are like adventures, Bilbo had often consoled himself. Nasty, disturbing, uncomfortable things that made you late for dinner. It was no great hardship that he had never met his, even if he couldn't tell which of his petunias were blue and which were purple.
Quest-ions
Discovering Mr Baggins by Eareniel
The story of a Hobbit, told through the eyes of the dwarves.
Thorin Oakenshield's Majestic Diary by Fruitsie
Thorin Oakenshield, King Under the Mountain and Totally Majestic Badass of Middle Earth, does not have a raging hard-on for Bilbo Baggins.
No, seriously.
Just read his diary.
Call You Home by northerntrash
In which the Company are entirely too nosy about matters that are supposed to be a secret, and Bilbo learns that being concerned about propriety is overrated when you could be making friends instead.
Time Travel (because walking Middle Earth is not enough)
Of an Arcane Binding by Salvia_G
An inexplicable magic ties Bilbo Baggins, hobbit of the Shire, to Thorin, dwarven prince of Erebor
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mylordshesacactus · 4 years
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mirror, mirror!
ooo, big one. Y’all need to start asking for commentary on like, specific scenes or chapters so that I can get into really interesting specifics, I feel like I’m just going over stuff I’ve said before!
Anyway, Mirror Mirror. Did you guys know I get A Callout Post over this? I’ve talked about it in my, uh, posts about why callout posts are stupid. (tl;dr: someone read literally nothing but the description and tags and decided I was an abuse apologist and also probably a pedophile based off them. You know, because it’s tagged with warnings for abuse and slavery. Because it’s about a former slave helping her girlfriend to escape her abuser. No, I don’t know where “and probably a pedophile” came into this, it’s Tumblr, it’s a cesspit.)
This is one of VERY few smutty fics I’ve ever read, and basically the only one where it’s like…a plot-heavy fic with sex scenes, as opposed to a smut oneshot. It’s also one of the few where I’m not intensely embarrassed by the sex scenes, so there’s that as well.
What I usually end up talking about re: this fic is how much care went into characterization. That’s always the thing that AUs hinge on–if the characters are recognizeable, even a heavily contrived AU will be believable (arranged marriage AUs kind of depend on this, as a rule XD). But if the characterization just…doesn’t track, then it doesn’t matter how good your plot or worldbuilding is, it fails as an AU. 
And that’s really HARD when you’re doing a mirrorverse! The whole point of a mirrorverse is that it’s the Evil Is Sexy AU. But it’s not as simple as just making everyone the opposite of their usual selves. It’s a MIRROR, not opposite day. Mirror images are flipped, yes, but…When you raise your right hand, your reflection raises its left hand, not its foot. There needs to be a connection.
So in this case it was really taking everyone’s canon traits and just thinking about what their experiences would likely BE in this world–without a Jedi Order, with the prevalence of the Sith, what would their influences have been? I’ve talked a lot before about what that means for different characters who would have had different experiences, not gonna do that all again, but, that’s how you get an Anakin Skywalker who’s…got some warped morality, but is actually much more emotionally stable than in canon, and you also get Darth Luminara.
Hmm. Oh, here’s some behind-the-scenes knowledge.
Barriss’ backstory is something I never got a chance to dig into in Mirror, Mirror, only really allude to. So, here it is. Barriss was a war orphan on Mirial–there are a lot of those. A poor rural community, but with the good luck to find herself in a genuinely good orphanage–the staff were overwhelmed, but they cared, there was no abuse, they did right by their kids as best they could. Money was always…nonexistent. There were a lot of hungry weeks and cold nights, but they tried, and the kids were loved.
I imagine that Barriss, who was there from around the age of two, was given…more responsibility than was really appropriate for a girl her age. But the staff really were overwhelmed, and if they asked more of her than they should have, they did their best to make up for it, and to at least make sure she understood that what they were asking wasn’t fair.
Luminara found her when she was nine.
They tried, they really did. They tried to hide Barriss–they didn’t want her to suppress her abilities, but in this world, in this universe, Force abilities make you the target of much worse than bounty hunters and there is no Jedi Order to save you. But they were…they were in the middle of nowhere, just a snowy village in war-torn rural Mirial. They would never punish a child for simply being who she was, only impressed on her the dangers and made sure she never used her powers in front of strangers.
Of course it wasn’t enough. Of course the women who ran the orphanage were in agony for the rest of their lives wondering what they could have done differently, but the answer is honestly that Barriss was too clever and too talented and too strong in the Force. They could never have stopped this from happening.
When a Sith Lord lands in your front yard, you can’t refuse her.
(They tried. One last time. They tried to hide her. They lied to Luminara’s face–they didn’t know the Sith can read minds, how many people would have ever met a Sith Lord face to fave like that?) Luminara had every intention of killing them, but she was too pleased with what she found. Besides–she DOES have her policy of only destroying what needs to be destroyed, and more importantly she was beginning the process of brainwashing her apprentice. Slaughtering everyone Barriss had ever loved in front of her would have poisoned the well irreversibly for no good reason–it wasn’t as if they could do anything to stop her.
Just to be a bitch about it, however, she tossed them five thousand credits on her way out the door and made sure Barriss saw it. That’s more money than they would have ever seen at one time, and she knew damn well how dirty it would make those good, honest people feel even though they didn’t want it, would gladly have died trying to stop her from taking the kid if it would have saved anyone, and tried to refuse it.
(When she laughs at Barriss’ “if you wanted a slave instead of an apprentice you should have bought one” with “I did”, that’s what she’s referring to. That’s why it sets Barriss off so badly.)
Anyway, that entire village was razed to the ground less than six months later. It would be impossible to prove that Luminara had anything to do with it, but it just so happened to coincide with a young Barriss subtly–or so she thought–starting to look for information about the home she could remember. So far as Barriss knows, she just barely escaped by pure luck and her master’s generosity. Convenient.
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sceawere · 6 years
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conquest | luca changretta
i lied, this isn’t the chapter that corresponds with the finale, more like the end of episode 5, i needed to clear some stuff up first but anyway, here you go
previous chapters:
[PART ONE: RISK] [PART TWO: UNDERSTANDING] [PART THREE: INCENTIVE] [PART FOUR: ASSOCIATION] [PART FIVE: EVALUATION]
“You’re too far out, Joey, come here” you jogged over, shuffled the little boy further in, and squatted next to him. You switched the ball into the other hand, and pointed down an invisible line “You keep your eyes right there, yeah? You can’t go wrong”
He nodded, raring to go, and you fluffed his hair before moving back towards the middle of the group of kids.
“Right, bat up, here we go”
He fidgeted with the slightly-too-big cricket bat for a moment, face pinched in focus as you prepared to bowl. There was a rumble behind you as you did, and you followed the ball from the bat, to the air, to behind you. The rumble was cars pulling into the courtyard, and the ball was heading straight for the convoy.
“Oh, shit” you mumbled, just as it bounced off the span of shiny black metal with a clunk, and trundled to a stop on the gravel before the wheel. You heard the gasp of the children behind you, the plonk of the wooden bat hitting the paving, and the patter of hurried feet back up the fire escapes.
You had to roll your lips between your teeth, and dip your head for a moment, as Matteo and Luca climbed out of the car. You could just about hold in the laugh, and gripped your hips a little tighter, raising your head.
“Welcome home, honey” you called out, laugh finally breaking through as you saw Matteo wipe down the point of impact.
“They dented my car!” he shouted, followed shortly after by a quick rumble of Italian aimed at the now empty stairways.
“Thought you borrowed them?” you teased, face screwed up in mock confusion. It dissolved, and a smirk broke through, as Luca moved over to you.
He looked over you, then the scene behind you, then you again.
“Making yourself useful?” he teased, smiling when you gave a mock punch to his gut. You pushed up onto your toes, arms wrapping around his neck to yank him down.
“Stop being tall, it’s inconvenient” you mumbled as you pulled back from the kiss, stepping backwards, and dragging him with you.
“You like that I’m tall”
“Do I?”
“Yeah, I think so- “he grabbed you, lifting you up, and heading towards the building. You shrieked a laugh, slapping at his back.
“Oh, welcome home Matteo. Thanks, sweetheart. London was terrible, thanks very much for asking. I hate this place” Matteo mumbled, stomping after the two of you.
-
“Not to ruin the moment” you mumbled, and Luca hummed. You pushed up and looked at him “I have theories, and proposals”
“Sure” he replied, still sleepy. It had been a long drive up from London, and he seemed exhausted, even after sleeping the whole night.
“I just want to get things sorted before- “
“Yeah” he agreed, eyes still closed. You smiled at him, and shuffled up to his side.
“What’s your plan? For after?”
He looked up at you, shuffling his spine to get comfortable again.
“What do you mean? After what?”
“I mean after the vendettas over. Are you…just gonna go home, or?”
“You getting attached, sweetheart?” he teased, and you didn’t even bother to sigh.
“Yeah” you admitted, and he smiled, eyes falling shut again. You placed your hand over his heart, and he covered it with his own “I want you to stay. You said about staying and I…want that”
“You don’t want to come to New York with me? Brand new city, fresh start- “he pushed up onto his side, nuzzling his nose against yours. Your hands stayed pressed at his chest, and he rolled his fingers into the hollows of yours “thought you’d want the adventure”
You shook your head, biting your lip.
“I don’t think I’d fit in New York”
“Everyone fits in New York, sweetheart, that’s the point”
“I’d get restless”
“It’s New York” he reminded you, and you sighed.
“I’d miss the trees”
“We have parks” he laughed, watching you flop to the pillows in a sulk.
“I’m not done here. Not yet”
“Ah, so we get to the truth of it”
“I wasn’t making excuses” you argued, and he nodded.
“Bad ones”
“Shut up” you gave a lazy kick out at his leg.
“What’s your plan?” he asked, and you rolled your lip through your teeth again.
“Me and…Polly, Ada, Lizzie, some of the other women…all the women basically” you finally settled on “had a vision for a better future. For the family. For the company. Only we didn’t really get around to it because Tommy got everyone locked up and nearly hanged. Anyway, the vision is still there. And I think I can be the one to enact it”
“Explain it to me”
“Well, that’s the thing. I don’t think it can work”
He frowned, and looked over at the window when there was a commotion outside. It sounded like the kids setting off for school, or at least that’s what you assumed as you glanced at the clock. It usually happened around this time, and you’d worked out a little schedule, how this place worked.
“I think Shelby Co. is done. Not over, just too set in it’s ways. Michael was being set up as Tommy’s successor and I assumed once he was gone, if you got rid of him, that we’d be able to put the plan in place and reform it, but I was wrong.
I think we need to start from scratch. Build from the foundations up, it’s the only way”
“What you thinking?” he frowned, but still smiling, trying to work you out.
“I’m thinking…we start an organisation. Not an extension of Shelby Co. Not an extension of the New York business. We can work with them both, but we’d be an outfit of our own. Word is Alfie is setting up to retire. It’s why he took your deal. Last job on the way out of the door. The London boys can’t keep a truce going longer than a few months and it’s tearing the place up. If Alfie leaves, no way Sabini won’t try to assume his territory”
“You think we should let him have it?”
“No, I think we should have it”
Luca’s smile spread over his face slowly, and he let out a little laugh.
“Every time I think I have you worked out…you surprise me”
You smiled, feeling more secure in your plan as you went on.
“Yeah, and everyone else will underestimate me too. We use that to our advantage. They’ll get sloppy, and they’ll get complacent, and we sweep in and clear the place up. I’ve watched Tommy all this time, I’ve handled the factory. I’ve seen how things work, and what mistakes get made, I know what to do and what to avoid. You know how to fight a war, I know how to run a kingdom.
You win me the territories, and I’ll hold them. I’ll make them thrive, trust me”
“I do trust you” he insisted, and you loved how quickly his eyes got serious.
“We work quick, we take what Alfie leaves before anyone even realises he’s gone. We hold the line. Continuity is important. We should leave most of his lieutenants in place, I know a lot of them from Tommy’s dealings and they know how to run the Jewish neighbourhoods better than we do. It’s better for everyone if we leave them in place. This isn’t so much a conquest as a…well, no, it’s kind of conquesty. Oh no”
He laughed at your realisation, at the forlorn look on your face.
“Don’t go getting soft on me, sweetheart”
“I should ring Ollie” you whispered to yourself, and Luca waited as your mind whirred.
“Doll, come on, I’m losing you”
You took a deep breath, trying to re-orient yourself.
“Right, so…we just hold the line for a while, let people settle into it, show them we’re not the big bad”
“Aren’t we?”
“Your dad paid his tithe to Tommy because he knew it was the best course. There was no reason for war up until the end. You pay your money, the world keeps turning, everyone gets to live their life. We won’t make the mistakes…” you paused, swallowing “John fucked up, and we’ll know better. He went too far, he made it worth a war”
Luca’s hand skimmed over your ribs, giving you time to collect yourself.
“People think I’m not paying attention when I’m quiet in the corner, but I listened, and I learned. I learned watching my dad settle disputes between families. I learned watching Polly run the shop while the boys were off at war. And I read the papers, I learned how war worked. Ada took me to Communist Party meetings, and we debated politics on the bus home” you smiled, memories flooding back to you “Uncle Charlie taught us how to run a yard, and Tommy taught me how to run a factory, and I kept my head down, and my eyes open, and I learned”
You took a deep breath, keeping your eyes to his proud gaze.
“I’m ready to use what I’ve learned. I’m ready to make my own choices. I’m ready to stop running away when it gets scary. I’m ready”
“Are you? Cos this isn’t academic anymore, sweetheart, you understand that?”
“I understand. I can do this. I kept Tommy’s legitimate business running ship shape, and I can-”
“This isn’t legitimate business” he reminded you.
“I’m a quick learner”
He dropped his head back to the pillow, closing his eyes as he listened.
“You said yourself the…agreement with Sabini is a marriage of convenience. Except now you’re sticking around and moving onto the scene, it’s not particularly convenient anymore. Sabini was fine with you being around for a few months while you got your business done, but after that, he’s going to get twitchy. And Sabini’s fucking unbearable at his best, so when he’s uncomfortable- “
You sat up, crawled to the end of the bed, and reached to slam the window shut as a particularly cool breeze rolled through. Luca watched as you turned back, trying to navigate over his legs under the covers and not knee anything important.
“Anyway, take his shit and do better is the long and short of it”
His eyebrows rose, and his smile grew, a laugh pouring out of him as you looked down at him.
“I’m serious”
“You’re really advocating for a regime change, huh?”
“I’m advocating for a little empire building, dearest” you replied, your own smile widening. He settled, looking up at you. You kept his gaze for a few moments, before moving to his side, and getting under the covers again.
“I’m serious. You need to cement yourself. And if that gets me some of my very selfish goals of keeping you alive, safe, and wiping off a guy I’ve thought was an unbearable twat from the start, then…” you trailed off, giving a little shrug.
“What did he ever do to you?” Luca teased, looking over at you until his smile dropped. He propped himself up a little, staring into you “Did he do something to you?”
“Look at you...getting all protective. Mrs Imundi will be so proud. She thinks you’re respectable, you know. I don’t know what gave her that impression”
“You’re making friends with the old lady down the hall?”
“I get bored, Luca. You’re off doing your little vendetta and I’m here on my lonesome, with nothing to do but learn Italian from a cute old lady and bake cakes and…plan criminal enterprise”
“My girl runs a factory, she cooks, she plans empires. Anything she can’t do?” he questioned, and you huffed.
“Shoot straight” you muttered, and he laughed.
“Those damn pigeons, huh?”
“Listen, if they couldn’t fly, those things would be fucked” you argued, and he shook his head “I’m serious. I think they’re actually kind of cute, but…they’d be done for”
“She’s been teaching you Italian?” he asked, and you fell quiet as he turned to you “Go on”
You opened your mouth, and then sighed. You pressed your lips together and shook your head. He laughed, moving his hand to your waist.
“Come on, I wanna hear”
You shook your head again.
“Why not?”
“I said I was learning, not that I was remembering”
He laughed, dipping his head for a moment, and you gave a little whimper.
“Try” he asked, and you furrowed your brows, eyes searching his.
“You’re doing this to wind me up and I don’t appreciate it”
“No, I’m doing it because I can imagine it, and I wanna know if it’s half as good as it is in my head”
“It won’t be…believe me” you argued, and he smiled at you.
“Come on, make me melt” he teased, and you fell back, pulling the pillow over your face in frustration. He pulled it off after a moment, and you huffed. He stayed there, propped on his elbow, staring down at you with that stupid smirk on his face.
“Matteo taught me to swear, you know. I can tell you off in three languages now, how about that?”
He laughed, dipping his head to lay kisses at your collar. You pushed up onto your elbows, lifting one hand to card through his hair.
“We’re idiots” you mumbled. Your elbow shifted in the mattress, reasserting your balance. Luca traced the tip of his thumb over his forehead, letting the weight of his arm continue its movement to drop to the pillow besides you.
“Enlighten me” he drawled, and you shifted, your foot catching a roll in the covers. You pulled them up and around your legs more, shutting out the draught that caught your toes.
“We’ve known each other what, two or three months? I’m lying in your bed plotting to start a criminal empire with you. How the fuck did that happen?” the end came out more as a mutter to yourself, a question you didn’t really want answered. Answers might sour the way your skin rolled at his touch, how you arched into the warmth of his body.
“It’s half your bed” he replied, ignoring the larger point. The smirk on his face showed it was intentional. He never had got over his affection for winding you up.
“This was always the way it would happen though, I suppose” you dropped your head back, settling into the pillows. He shifted slightly onto his side, tracing a hand down the side of your face.
“How it would happen?” he muttered, pressing his lips to your forehead. There was a tingle of stubble there, tingling at your skin. You’d been lying in bed too long.
“We never made plans. We’d be somewhere, and then we’d be somewhere else. Move with the migrations, with the sun, with the breeze. Let your feet decide where they took you. Guess my heart wanted to walk a path of its own as well” you smiled to yourself, tucking further into his chest “I always thought I’d be too restless to stick around with someone, yet here I am, planning our empire”
“Is this your roundabout way of giving me a compliment, doll?” you scoffed, but he continued “because you can just say ‘you’re really special, Luca’ and it would- “
You grabbed the blankets and threw them up over your heads, plunging you into darkness.
-
The door peaked open, and you leant forward from your place on the counter.
“You decent?” Matteo called out, and you reached behind you to pick up another sweet from the packet.
“Not for a while now, but I’ve got clothes on, if that’s what your asking” you replied, stuffing the sugary treat into your mouth. Luca smiled from his place at the table as you swung your legs out a little.
Matteo appeared around the corner, leaning against the oddly coloured paintwork.
“You been telling tales about me?” he asked, face so serious it was almost intimidating, but you laughed anyway, tucking your head into your lap. You heard the crinkle of the newspaper, and Luca’s own chuckle.
You sat back up, flicking your hair out of the way, sighing.
“You were gone nearly a week, Matti boy, I had to find something to occupy my time. Besides, you got there first. Mrs Imundi told me all about your little chats”
“I just got accosted – she wouldn’t let me leave for over an hour!” he motioned towards the doorway, and you looked over at Luca, who was shaking his head at the two of you.
“I only said good things!” you argued, swinging your head back around to him. His eyes flared, and he stepped closer to you.
“Alright, alright. Everybody, simmer down” Luca said, flicking the newspaper once more.
“She feed you?” you asked, slapping your hand to him shoulder a few times.
“She did, yeah”
“She fed you”
“She did”
“Well, then” you slid down off the counter, and moved to sit on Luca’s lap. You eyed the story he was reading, about the strikes “Stop bloody moaning”
“Boss, I don’t like this girl” Matteo shook his head, picking at the bundle of wax paper on the counter, trying to work out it’s contents. He considered it for a few moments, taking a piece, and throwing it into his mouth.
“You like my sweets though, huh?”
“You make these?” he asked, pointing at them. You shook your head, leaning your head against Luca’s. His hair was still damp from the bath as you worked your fingers through the strands.
“Needed something to keep me occupied, there’s about fifteen tins in that cupboard” you waved a lazy hand over, and Matteo paused in his chewing. He stepped back, hooked a finger under the cupboard door, and looked inside.
“She gets restless” Luca explained, as Matteo flicked open tins.
“And I thought it best to keep Tommy’s men occupied while your guys sorted out some comings and goings, so I toddled off to the market one afternoon, and they followed me like good little lapdogs. Made it worth my while, there’s- “you motioned to a particular pot, and Matteo did a few unsuccessful points at the wrong boxes as you tried to guide him to the right one “candied peel in that one. It’s good. My mother used to make it for us”
He scoffed, but pinched out a piece anyway.
“Can’t imagine Polly as the- “
“My birth mum” you interjected, eyes stuck to the paper. You saw his pause in your periphery, and he put the tin back quietly.
“It’s good” he agreed, coming to sit at the table.
“Don’t be weird, Matteo. It’s uncomfortable” you replied, and he gave a little smile “So, London. Productive?”
“Alfie was exactly how you said he’d be” Matteo returned, and you smiled at the tone of his voice, wondering exactly what he’d said this time.
“Yeah, that’s Alfie”
“We got what we needed” Luca explained, pushing the paper away.
“Don’t trust him, though. Watch this be the one time he decides not to screw Tommy over” you reminded him, getting up and moving towards the kettle. You lit the stove, filling it with water, and setting it over the flames. You turned and rested against the counter.
“We’ve got some contingencies in place” Matteo explained, and you looked between them.
“Like what?” you asked, and he looked up to Luca, seeking approval.
“Tell her” Luca instructed, rising from his seat. He planted a kiss on your cheekbone, winking at you as he moved towards the bedroom “She’s part of the family now, too”
Matteo turned to you, still chewing a piece of peel. He looked you over, not convinced.
“No, really. I’m going to be your boss soon, looks like”
His face fell, and he settled into the chair further as he huffed.
“Boss!”
-
Luca cleared away the plates that evening, while Matteo told old tales of their misspent youth.
“I’m halfway over the wall when this cranky old guy from our neighbourhood starts hollering about robbers. Starts shouting at his wife to bring his gun. Well, I’m only one leg over- “Matteo mimed his position on the edge of the chair, and you laughed even harder “I get so startled, I jump three feet in the air trying to clear that thing, catch my ankle”
He slapped his hands together, waving them in the air.
“I went flying like a fucking bird, upside down into Auntie’s garden. Luca has to catch me to save me from breaking every bone in my body. I nearly tore his shoulder out it’s socket”
You pulled your legs up as you laughed again, clutching the bottle in your hand.
“She never forgave me for trampling those damn roses” he laughed, reaching for the bottle, and refilling his glass.
“I had a bruise down half my arm for weeks. Look like I’d tried to smash my way through a wall. Had scrapes all over me” Luca added, shrugging at the end.
“Bet you snuck out again the next weekend, though” you replied, catching your breath.
“The next night” they both laughed, and you shook your head at them.
“Oh, boys, what am I gonna do with the two of you?” you teased.
“I haven’t even started on the- “Matteo paused as the phone in the entry way rang, and Luca got up to answer it.
“Yeah?” he lifted one arm to rest on the wall above his head, leaning close to the phone, as if someone was right behind him listening. You frowned when he turned and looked over at you.
“Yeah, hang on” he replied to whoever was on the other end, and stepped back to motion to you “It’s for you”
You frowned even further, raising from the chair. Yes, people knew you were staying with Luca. But they shouldn’t know where. Even Tommy’s men only knew you were somewhere in the 200-room building. Luca’s face showed he was thinking the same thing as you took the receiver from him, and placed it to your ear.
“Yes?” you asked, apprehensive to hear which voice came through.
“I’ve had a fucking day and I need a chat, you free?”
You exhaled, wiping over your face as you laughed to yourself.
“Ada, you had me fucking bouncing. How the hell did you get this number?”
“When I have I ever not been able to find you, eh?”
“Ada”
“Even that time when we were twelve and you were in that hayloft for a week” she carried on, ignoring you.
“It was three days, and are you ever going to let that go?”
“One of the women who lives above you is an old friend from the cause. She recognised you and wondered whether you were entirely there of your own will” she explained.
“Well, I won’t tell Luca any of that and you better not tell anyone else any of it either” you whispered, moving further around the corner.
“How is your new man?” she asked, and you pushed your tongue into your cheek at her tone.
“He’s fine”
“Hmmm”
“Ada, when did I ever get at you about Freddie?”
There was a non-committed noise at the other end, and you smiled at your victory.
“You used to be the girl hiding out in odd places with enemy number one, remember those days?”
“Remember those mistakes” she replied, and you rolled your eyes.
“You wouldn’t change shit, admit it”
“Easier to say at this end, though isn’t it?”
“Ada, I thought you wanted to discuss the events of today, not those of yesteryear”
“I got arrested” she replied, so quick and casual, you almost didn’t catch it.
“Wait, what?” you spat, pushing away from the wall.
“Soldiers turned up at the door, dragged me off to a dingy basement somewhere. Strip searched me- “ “What the fuck!” you shouted, and the boy appeared around the corner. You waved them off, lifting the phone off the little shelf, and carried it clutched at your stomach awkwardly, dragging the cord behind you back to the table. It rattled and clanged as it was dropped to the table, replaced in your hand by the bottle as you poured yourself a refill.
“There’s a new guy around” she continued.
“Soldier?” you asked, and she hummed.
“Colonel Younger” she replied, giving an airy tone, only slightly laced with malice. You took a long sip, ignoring the men as they stared at you.
“Sounds like a cunt, was he a cunt?”
She laughed, and you settled back in the chair, glass in hand.
“Apparently he and Tommy…they knew each other in the war or…something. Bit of a toff, but…not what I was expecting”
“Ooohh, Ada. Is that a little bit of- “?
“No”
“No, I definitely think there was some interest in your tone. Well, well”
“Shut up!” she spat back.
“Was he nice?”
“I was naked and angry for most of it. He was offering me a deal”
“He can still be pretty and productive” you argued back, and she scoffed.
“He started talking about the old days. He’s got files on us all. All of us” she emphasised, and you sighed, flicking a look to Luca.
“Why’s he sniffing around?”
“Because Tommy made a deal” she replied, and you groaned.
“Fucking Tommy!” you shouted, dropping your head back “He’s making deals with the Army now? Why?! What does that possibly- “
“He’s going to work with them to fuck the communists, apparently”
“I thought he was already fucking communists. What happened to…we used to sit around and debate this shit together and now he’s…fucking hell. I miss being twelve”
Ada laughed, and you sighed, wiping your face as Matteo passed you the bottle. You raised it to him in a mock toast and took a swig straight from the bottle.
“Did you give him your ‘people are all shit and I’ve given up’ spiel or did talk of the past rekindle- “
“Fuck off” she cut in, and you laughed “He did it to me, too”
“Did what?”
“Started the plan without telling me” she sighed, and you hummed.
“He does that – wait, what plan?”
“I ‘have a foot in both camps’ apparently. I think they’re going to try and use me as a double agent”
“Oh, well. Doesn’t that sound familiar? Thomas Shelby making someone a double agent against their will, without even telling them until they’re half way to fuckityboo”
You slammed the bottle down, sharing a look with Luca.
“He’s got contracts for military vehicles, sounds like he’s going to be supplying half the world. Says it’s worth about 2 million”
You flared your eyes, adjusting in the chair.
“I used to get excited when his mum gave me pennies to nip the shop, and now he’s throwing stacks of cash around”
“You’re not exactly scrapping anymore, though, are you?” she replied, and you looked around the room.
“You’d be surprised. Besides, Miss ‘Head of International Bullshit’” she laughed, and you smiled down the phone, ignoring the men as they chattered quietly between themselves “none of us are who we were anymore”
“No” she agreed “We’re not”
“No. Speaking of which…” you trailed off, not sure how to phrase it.
“Oh, God. Is he marrying you? You’re not up it already, are you?”
“Well…I…let’s…not even think about that just yet” you spluttered back “Because, no. And, no. And, whoa!”
There was a release of breath on the other end and you sat up properly in the chair, fidgeting with the ring of moisture the glass had made on the table top.
“I’m…working with Luca now. For real” you explained, and waited in the silence. She didn’t reply for a long time.
“Not against you! Not like that. Just…we’re…I can’t tell you”
“You can’t tell me?” she replied, disappointed “You really don’t trust me?”
“It’s not that I don’t trust you. It’s that I don’t trust my own perception anymore”
“So, a good time to be making important decisions like throwing your lot in with a Mafia man, then?”
“Is there ever a good time to do that?” you replied, tone flat. She scoffed a laugh, settling back into the silence.
“He’s sticking around isn’t he? Whatever happens?”
“Well, if he’s dead I doubt he’ll be very productive but…yeah, I know what you mean”
“And you’re going to help him set up over here?”
“Want to join?” you asked, and she laughed “I’m not joking, Ada. I’ve got a plan”
“Oh, God. You sound like Tommy now”
“I’ll forgive that because you’ve had a long day” you shot back, smiling to yourself.
“Sweetheart…” she trailed off, and you heard something in the background, followed by a sigh “I’ve got to go. Karl’s- “
“Yeah, ok, don’t worry yourself. Think on it, though. Remember Polly’s vision? For a better company? What we discussed? I’m in, Ada. I’m going to make it happen”
She sighed down the phone again and you heard her muttering to Karl.
“I’ll…think about it. Look after yourself, yeah?”
“You too. Love you, Ada”
“Love you too”
“Give my love to Karl”
“Yeah. I’ll tell your mum you’re alright as well” she gave a little pointed reminder, and you sighed.
“I take back my love for you, you’re mean, I don’t like you anymore”
“Bye-bye” she laughed, and you dropped the phone back down. You looked up at the guys, switching your view between the two of them.
“Right, let’s talk business”
-
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hi-n-oops · 7 years
Text
Fic Rec
I am making a list of fics that I read/re-read (and liked) this week. Mostly because I am abysmal at remembering titles and only remember them by summary (ik im stupid). So here it goes!
A Beginning by SexyAssWoman  @thesexyasswoman
Harry had been in love with Louis Tomlinson since he found his poetry blog years ago. Without even knowing how the man looked like, Harry was infatuated with him. So when he gets a chance to meet Louis for the first time, Harry is set on making an impression. That is until he gets distracted by the blue eyed stranger that sits beside him.
Or, Where Harry was in love with a poet, and the stranger that sat beside him on a poetry session had eyes that looked like the sea.
**This one was short but very sweet!
Dance to the Distortion by Lis (domesticharry) @domestic-harry
Louis accidentally breaks Harry's camera lens and in order to get it fixed, they decide to participate in a romantic couples study. The only issue is that they are not actually couple. Well that and the fact they cannot stand each other.
**Enemies to Lovers- Check; Fake/Pretend Relationship - Check; Enemies who are pretending to be in a fake relationship - Double Check. This fic is pure gold. I loved the dynamics between the characters and how everything played out!!
Hearts Don't Break Around Here by sincewewereeighteen @downgoesanotherhero
"Another car has stopped at the beginning of the carpet. People are going to collapse any time soon, and Louis knows why. Harry Styles has just arrived. And Louis. Well. Louis is a grown man. He curses himself a hundred times for even letting his heart race in his chest. He knew they were bound to meet tonight. What the hell is wrong with him?"
Or: the one in which Harry's having his big movie debut and Louis sings on it's soundtrack.
**I am on a lookout for all the Actor Harry fics and this one was one of the cutest out there!!
Sail into the Sun by angelsvevo
Prince Louis Tomlinson is sick of the closet. Harry Styles is a con man with a hatred of rich people. Louis needed a way out, Harry needed a husband. It was a mutual agreement. Doesn't mean they have to like each other.
**I got to know about this one because of one of my anons, so thank you for that. The author has orphaned the fic, so it was a little hard to find. Marriage of Convenience au!!
Homegrown by casuallyhl @casuallyhl
“It wasn’t an easy decision, if I’m honest,” Harry admits, shoulders sagging in on himself. “Moving is really difficult. My whole life was in Manchester. But Manchester didn’t want me. Leeds did.”
“Well, Leeds is happy to have you,” Louis says, giving Harry a kind smile.
Harry brightens a bit at that, undeniably pleased. “Yeah?”
“Yeah,” Louis replies, expression soft and lips curved.
Or, a gardening AU where Harry is new to town and the newest volunteer at the local gardening club, Louis is the attractive grandson of one of the members, and the nosy volunteers hatch a plan to get them together.
**This one was so sweet! A feel-good fic!!
The Boys of Summer by larrymylove
Harry is in love with Louis and would have given anything to be his partner for the end of term literature assignment. Louis is the only kid in the class who can get away with anything, and all he wants is the attention of the pretty boy with the curls across the room. Featuring lots of banter, pining, flirting, and Fionn as an unwilling Cupid. 
**This is a short one but adorable!!
Heart on an Open Highway by afirethatcannotdie @afirethatcannotdie
AU. Harry's a popstar about to release his second album, and Louis is the Radio 1 intern who gets his heart racing.
**This is probably the 100th version of the prompt. I loved it!!
i'll be yours to keep by midnights @harryindallas  (you have to be logged in to read this)
louis should've thought a lot more about who he said his fake boyfriend is, especially since he and his "significant other" kinda hate each other. most of the time. 
**This was a re-read! A Hogwarts AU and being a Potterhead, it was a treat!! Enemies to Lovers + Fake/Pretend Relationship!! Need I say more?
Just a Flower Boy by Larryruinedme
Harry Styles is a clumsy, flower crown-wearing, openly gay junior with only two true friends, Niall and Zayn. Louis Tomlinson is the school's attractive, straight football captain, with a small body and a big personality. As fate will have it, Harry has a huge, unrequited, utterly hopeless crush on Louis.
Fate is thrown out the window the day that Harry and Louis find themselves partnered up for a history project. Harry starts to receive notes from a secret admirer, Louis starts to get jealous of Harry's budding friendship with senior Nick Grimshaw, Zayn and Liam develop a thing for each other, and Niall is the best mate anyone could have asked for. And suddenly, Harry's crush on Louis doesn't seem so utterly hopeless anymore.
**This one was so unbearably adorable!! I love HS AUs!!
Swallow My Words by YesIsAWorld @louandhazaf
Senior year is stressful. On top of balancing school work, family, and friends, Harry's lacrosse team is vying to win the state championship, he's not sure where he's going to college yet, and he has a secret boyfriend that no one can know about.
**This fic is very real. Harry’s teammates are homophobic assholes. Louis is Harry’s secret bf. And though Louis is supportive of Harry, he is tired of hiding their relationship. It deals with homophobia, so beware!
Small Doses (Loving You It's Explosive) by QuickedWeen
Louis Tomlinson finds himself at Vitality Fitness to try and turn his life around after having left his cheating boyfriend of four years. The gym's owner, Liam, quickly becomes a good friend, but his right hand man is rude and dismissive from the get-go. Louis and Harry continue to clash all while Harry is trying to move his way up the ranks in Manchester's amateur boxing circuit, but they can't seem to stay away from each other.
**I LOVED THIS!! ABSOLUTELY LOVED THIS!! Harry is a boxer (yes, that is a huge bonus to me).
Fool's Gold by tvshows_addict @tvshows-addict
Leaflet for Over Again Inc.
“In relationships, there are three types of people: those who are happy, those who are unhappy but accept it and deal, those who are unhappy and in denial.
Handling this last category is our job: we are professional couple breakers.
To reach our goal, we use all means necessary.”
Or the Arnacoeur AU in which Harry is scheduled to be married to Liam in 10 days and Harry’s mother hires Louis and his team to break them up.
**This has been in my reading list for a long time. Louis is hired to break up Harry’s seemingly happy engagement but nothing is what it seems when Louis gets closer to the situation. I won’t say anything else, find out yourself!!
Only Reason by letsjustsee @letsjustsee
Or, Louis is most definitely smitten with Harry from the second he sees him, but he is also most definitely not the world's foremost expert on beekeeping. He decides to roll with it anyway.
**This is another short one but oh-so adorable!!
tangled up in you by missandrogyny @missandrogyny
Harry blinks once. And blinks again. And says, his voice dangerous: “Niall, did you get me a mail-order bride?”
Because what the actual fuck. It kind of looks like Niall’s just purchased a person. For Harry.
Niall blinks back at him for a few moments, before throwing his head back and howling with laughter. Harry throws a pillow at him. Hard. “No, what the fuck, Harry.”
“A prostitute then?” Harry also doesn't want a prostitute.
“Of course not!”
“A stripper?”
“No!”
Damn, he’s running out of ideas. He settles for launching another pillow at Niall’s head. Niall bats it away easily, still laughing. “Stop!”
“What did you get me, then?!” Niall must hear the tinge of hysteria in his voice, because he’s pulling himself together, trying to stop himself from laughing.
There’s still a big grin on his face, though, when he says, “I got you a professional cuddler.”
A professional…what. “What?”
**Another re-read! This fic is gold. I have probably re-read it three times now and I love it everytime!! Also, the SMUT WAS AWESOME!!!
As Cold as a Whisper by panda_bear21
Harry did not turn around to face Louis yet and Louis’ body screamed at him to take the opportunity and run. Run until he couldn’t anymore, until his lungs collapsed out of breath and he was either safe and away or caught back in Harry’s gaze. Harry turned then, and his eyes were darker than the heavens and just as green as the haunting woods surrounding them, entrapping Louis. Focused, and clear. Louis' heart rattled in his ribcage, shaking, wanting to escape his unmoving body. Harry walked closer and Louis’ eyes stayed on him, breath leaving in a sharp exhale when Harry bent down to touch his face.
A fairy tale au where people in Louis' village are disappearing and Louis is married off to uphold a centuries long agreement.
**This is a fantasy AU. Also arranged marriage! It was so unique and mysterious if a little dark at times! The whole atmosphere of the fic was very foreboding...
pray for some sweet simplicity by delsicle @emperorstyles
Louis is the only omega to ever make it in the cut-throat world of competitive motorcycle racing—that is, he would be if anyone actually knew about his identity. Now, his sights are set towards competing in—and winning—the European Grand Prix, the biggest and most difficult race of the entire year, so he can disappear underground for good. He’s close enough, too, until an alpha sports journalist is assigned to follow Louis’s every move as he prepares for the event of his career.
Or, an AU where motorcycle racing is the biggest sport in a heavily divided world, Louis is trying to take control of his own destiny, and Harry is in for more than he bargained for.
**I probably cried tears of joy when I found this one because it was 200k+ and I was in need of a fic that I could read for a long time on a long ride and because I loved the setting of the fic. It was beautifully written. Your heart will ache for Louis... 
Dunkirk AU Drabble (Alex/Louis Smut basically by @emperorstyles
**DUNKIRK SPOILERS!!!!!!!! So beware. Its porn, but porn with feelings. I actually cried a little (i’m weird, i know)
Can't Fool Me by emma1234 @lads-laddylads
“I hate frats,” Louis repeats for what feels like the millionth time.
“Yes, I’ve heard, once or twice or every day for the past three years,” Liam says. His careful tone reminds Louis of how his mom always sounds when one of his siblings is on the brink of a tantrum.
Louis glances speculatively at Liam’s frat brothers, who are still huddled together and chatting, with the exception of the one who’s looking in Louis’ direction. Maybe Louis shouldn’t rule out a tantrum. While making a scene wouldn’t actually free him from fraternity nonsense in the future, it would at least be entertaining.
AU where Louis hates fraternities and would never be into a frat boy. And one of these things is definitely not a lie.
**I read this as soon as it came out because I read fics before going to bed (who doesn’t?) Louis hates frats, Harry is a frat boy. You do the math. Also, there is a SURPRISE!!!
 Happy Reading!!!
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