5 + 1 Fic Friday Roundup: My, That's a lot of Blood

Some serial killer AU (or adjacent) fics.

Where Angels Fear to Tread (AO3) - "Leonard Snart had a very tough childhood, and now he likes to murder people. Is that really so wrong? Okay, maybe it is, but that hasn't stopped him yet."

Blood on the Crown (AO3) - "She leaned over and placed a soft kiss on his brow, a covenant between them, a secret promise that she would tear the world asunder if it meant keeping him safe."

Outrageous so Hideous (AO3) - "Harry knows that everyone would be disappointed in him. Hell, he’s disappointed in himself. But he just doesn’t see any other way to change the rotten structure of wizarding society."

Unnatural (AO3) - "Kakashi’s not fond of Omegas, but when he found one so peculiar, he couldn’t help his curiosity."

The Bloody Boys (AO3) - "Nana heralds from a family of serial killers. She neglects to mention this to her husband, but when Iemitsu makes it clear he doesn’t expect Tsuna to join his family, Nana brings him into hers."

Bonus: Bleed Out (AO3) - "After Iruka’s confrontation with Kakashi before the chuunin exams, he’s targeted by a serial killer who seems to be picking off disrespectful chuunin. Iruka survives, but it’s only a matter of time before the killer returns to finish the job. Finding his name on the suspects’ list, Kakashi bullies his way onto Tenzou’s investigation in an attempt to clear his name and protect Iruka from the real threat."

Monday's Muse: Writing Prompt

The hunger took her, as it takes us all in the end.

5 + 1 Fic Friday Roundup: Surprise Relative

Some fics where a surpise blood relation pops up. Like, sometimes the guy who raised you was lying about being your dad, sometimes a Pit gives you a baby, etc.

Imprint (AO3) - "He screwed his eyes shut, held his breath, desperately wished that he was back in his safehouse, alone and blissfully unaware. But the weight in his hands remained, and when he opened his eyes, it was to the bean-shaped 'fuck you' the Lazarus Pit had kindly bestowed upon him, arms and legs folded up against his front beneath off-white muslin while tiny lips smacked softly.'

Red Blood, Blue Blood (AO3) - "Jason Todd was living a very ordinary life in Crime Alley before his mother gets sick. Then, suddenly, Jason and Catherine have to grapple with the secret everyone has known since Jason was born with black hair and blue eyes—Willis Todd wasn't his biological father. Bruce Wayne is, and not only is he the richest man in Gotham, he has three other children who may not be glad to have an interloper in their midst."

Going Off-Book (AO3) - "Dick winces. “Tim, meet Damian Wayne. Apparently, his mom told him who his dad was when he turned eighteen and the first thing he did after finding out was enroll in the nearest police academy. He served for a couple of years and just arranged a transfer here from Metropolis.” He directs a pleading gaze at Tim. “Like I said, Bruce had to go out of town for a while, but he asked me to show Damian the ropes. Tim, I’m sorry, but—"

when the dead tree flowers (AO3) - "It wasn't solely Jango Fett's DNA that went into making Domino Squad. Palpatine had other plans for them. Thankfully, so does their second genetic donor, and he has just as few qualms about murder as a Sith Lord."

Open Arms (AO3) - "The story starts when Quinlan get's a call from the hospital; an old girlfriend has given birth and named him the father, leaving the baby at the hospital. This triggers a series of events that bring Fox back into contact with his bio family, who he is not as distant from as he might like to think."

Bonus: welcome all your bastard actions home (AO3) - "Daenerys had arrived at Winterfell three days past, a great host of dragons and roses and suns and krakens, clearly expecting Jon -- the King in the North, as uneasy that title rests on his shoulders -- to bend the knee. Instead, he takes her to the crypts to speak of ancient history."

Monday's Muse: Writing Prompt

Murderbot's first murder.

5 + 1 Fic Friday Roundup: Went Viral

Some fanfiction where social media plays an important role.

I have acquired a child. (AO3) - Din Djarin asks space Reddit for parenting advice.

The #ImmortalHusbands Conspiracy (AO3) - The Old Guard's power couple, Joe and Nicky, are a Tumblr conspiracy.

In Which Dabi's Tits Save the League and Dismantle Hero Society (AO3) - Dabi inadvertently becomes an internet sensation.

Reddit Posts of a Crime Alley Kid (AO3) - "A character study of a hot trashfire of a human being in the DCUniverse as told through his many many Reddit posts."

The GARNet AU (AO3) - "The Coruscant Guard decides to make use of their copious free time and create a clone-only holonet. This is very great for the clones and very bad for everyone else."

Bonus: Undead Lockpick Inc. (AO3) - "Danny is a Locksmith with a serious grudge against Master Lock. Superman thinks because of the name that Master Lock must mean it's a good lock. Shenanigans ensue."

There is a fic for this: we're in the homestretch of the high times

Jaster tries to break into the Temple Archives in increasingly inventive and ridiculous ways. The Temple Guard take bets on how much time will pass between attempts (the shortest was two hours, the longest was seven months) and film the whole thing for the rest of the Guard to watch later. Madame Nu has a sixth sense for when he’s making an attempt and makes her paranoia everyone else’s problem. Mace gets sympathy headaches.

The closest he ever got was the main doors to the Archive.

(Yoda showed him the way.)

Monday's Muse: Writing Prompt

They want what on the wedding cake!?

5 + 1 Fic Friday Roundup: On Campus

One of the things that April is an awareness month for is community college. So, have some fanfic with student//teacher characters or a school setting.

Mahogany (AO3) - "Shepard and squaddies are students at the elite Galactic Training Academy. (Think Starfleet meets Hogwarts. In space.) Reapers have been dead for hundreds of years, but there are still plenty of baddies out in the galaxy. Shepard-in-training rises to the occasion, with the aid of her squad and a certain snarky flight student. Currently Rated M for language and mature situations."

The Night Will Come but Not to Stay (AO3) - "Jazz is excited about going to Gotham University for college. It's halfway across the country from Amity Park and anyone who knows about her weird family or ghost nonsense. Finally, she can pretend to be a normal woman who just wants to go into psychiatry. She meets a cute guy named Jason, and they seem to be getting along great."

Form 23-C: Application for a New Roommate (AO3) - "After battling ninjas, aliens, madmen, mafiosos, other heroes and death itself, Jason was about to face his most unknown foe yet: a normal life. It's fine. He'd always dreamed of going to college and for once reality sort of lived up to expectations. He loves the classes, he can handle the workload and his cases too. His roommate is a total douche, but whatever. Jason's fine, he's got this. Then he meets his roommate's brother. Jason totally doesn't have this."

Holy Romantic Overtures, Batman! (AO3) - "After the heist of a lifetime, henchman!Jason decides to go legit and enrolls in college. The last person he expected to see there was Robin, and he certainly didn’t expect to fall for him either. But somehow it all works out. Maybe it’s all the labels?"

campus cryptid vs. future valedictorian (AO3) - "Mara Glass did not care about "weird hot guy," the supposed "campus cryptid." She had heard of him her first couple years and had him pointed out to her by a classmate once, but what was there to notice? Okay, he was probably thirty, a nontraditional student, so what? There were a number of those around. Apparently he was hot--well congrats to people who were into people, they could keep him. And if you asked Mara, from her extremely objective perspective, those Disney-green eyes were doing a lot of heavy lifting. There was nothing particularly noteworthy about a thirty-something guy who didn't talk about himself to twenty-year-old classmates. He probably had, like, a real life. There were rumors he was married, although Brittany noted that the only reason people thought that was because one time someone heard him finish a phone call with, "You light the candles, I'll bring dinner. I love you." None of that was remotely interesting to Mara. He sounded like a normal person, and she wished people would shut up about him. Then in third year, she had a history class with weird hot guy."

Bonus: Scholastic Nightmare (AO3) - "Nara Sayuri, a religious studies major from a traditional household, would be hard pressed to come up with a worse nightmare. It was her first time presenting a paper at a conference and apparently her paper was so wrong that one of her ancestors - a deified ancestor, the Shikabane-hime herself - came down from the heavens specifically to point out how off base Sayuri was."

Monday's Muse: Writing Prompt

Embracing a Monty Python vibe: include a silly/specific insult. Have your character accuse of acting like a particularly credulous mouse or tell them crow's sneeze at their lineage or etc.

5 + 1 Fic Friday Roundup: Variations on a Theme

Have some fics that look at a single character in various timelines/scenarios or the same scenario with different characters.

Seire Kari, Horrible Goose Jedi (AO3) - "The Line of Bane has spent most of a millennium plotting the downfall of the Republic. Seire Kari has a knack for truth and a talent for chaos. There are many, many, many ways this could go; here are some of them." Set to Private.

The many lives of Hatake Raiden (AO3) - "Hatake Raiden is an OC of mine. These are Raiden's many lives."

Through a Dark Prism and Into the Light (AO3) - Various villain Tim Drakes.

The Valaena Verse (AO3) - "Short stories depicting what could have happened if Rhaegar had a younger sister, who happens to be a self-insert. Always shipped with a different character and always told from a canon perspective."

The GOTS Cast Saves Westeros (FF / SV) - "Sean and Charles can't have all the fun. So as the Muse strikes, this one trick pony of a scribbler will upload whole short stories or snippets of a story involving a member of the cast from the show inserted into their corresponding character. Will Kate Dickie succeed? Will Joe Dempsie fail? Will Jason Momoa make things worse? Will Emilia Clark die horribly? Only time will tell."

Bonus: Go on. Do your duty. (AO3) - "It didn't happen that way. In fact, it could happen so many different ways. Stannis Baratheon deserves better. So does Shireen. So did the watchers and book readers."

Monday's Muse: Writing Prompt

Not a bribe. A reward for good behavior.

if you like a piece of media that is good eventually youll more or less run out of things to say about how good it is but if you like a piece of media that is objectively pretty mediocre but also somehow deeply compelling thats how the demons get you

5 + 1 Fic Friday Roundup: Doorstoppers (II)

Have some more very long reads (100 or more chapters) from all different fandoms in this month of March.

Rebuilding (FF) - "Hermione Granger returns to Hogwarts to help rebuild the shattered castle the summer after the war. She and the other summer resident - and eventually their friends - have to come to terms with how the war broke more than just the walls of the building. Follows multiple Hogwarts students through '8th year' and one additional year of early adulthood."

The Savoir King, The Master Tactician, and the Queen of Liberation (AO3) - "Fate has a way of playing tricks on people even as it brings them together. Some of Foldan's legends say that when calamity comes, the goddess binds the souls of champions to ensure they fight at each other's side, onward to victory. Less spiritually-inclined individuals say that conflict makes friends, allies and more out of strange bedfellows."

Dreaming of Sunshine (FF) - "Life as a ninja. It starts with confusion and terror and doesn't get any better from there. OC Self-insert. No pairings."

Trailblazer (SB / AO3) - "The Capes. The Gangs. The Drugs. The cycle continues like an endless waltz. The world is broken. The world needs to change."

Ever Seen a Devil with a Halo? (AO3) - "Clary Fairchild is annoying. This much, Alec Lightwood is sure of, and he's not about to change his mind. So why did he agree to go on a blind date with her friend? Because he'd obviously lost his goddamn mind."

Bonus: A Farmer's Tale (AO3 / SB / FF) - "A 30-year-old American farmer is sent to the world of ASOIAF. Follow as he tries to create a life for himself."

Monday's Muse: Writing Prompt

Who is the most powerful person in the room?

5 + 1 Fic Friday Roundup: Doorstoppers

It's still March (which has the "Worm Moon" and is national reading month) so I thought that recommending some long reads might be appropriate - here are a few fics that are over 50 or more chapters long.

Embers (AO3) - "Dragon's fire is not so easily extinguished; when Zuko rediscovers a lost firebending technique, shifting flames can shift the world..."

A Better Fate (AO3) - "Beginning two years before A Game of Thrones, Jon Snow is spurred in a different direction. This brings on new adversities for him, as well as the chance for a better fate for the Starks."

pride is not the word I'm looking for (AO3) - "Shang Qinghua goes to take a self-indulgent peek at his baby protagonist son and gets a kick to the shrivelled heart for his troubles. He gave up on changing the story years ago! Yet he finds himself helping his protagonist son's adoptive mother anyway. Just this one change won't matter too much, right?"

Once More with Clarity (AO3) - "The Heroes have lost the war. A desperate last-ditch attempt – to go back in time and make sure none of this chaos ever happens. Endeavour wakes up on the night of Sekoto Peak, the night Touya burned and his family was lost to him forever, determined to set right what once went wrong by taking the slow path to redemption, to be the man his family deserved and the Hero that Japan needed. He causes a chain reaction in which All Might adopts Tomura Shigaraki, Keigo Takami and Touya fall in love and the Commission might be the ones to turn Touya into Dabi, if he doesn’t find a way to stop them."

running with lightning feet (AO3) - "Feral gets kidnapped by a Jedi Master. It's the best thing that's ever happened to him."

Bonus: Commander Fox is Completely Fine (AO3) - "It wasn't the same, he wanted to say. That's a battlefield, this is the center of the Republic, it's different. The truth is that it's not as different as it should be."

Shout-out to all the stories that didn't make it out of the shower with us in time to be actually written down.