#fandom proposals from grotto | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

dr-lizortecho · 2 years

Text

RNM fic masterlist (sorry guys but I felt like it <3)

not all my wip’s are on here, but I wanted to have somewhere to store these by relationship (fandoms + ships I write for)

RNM Echo:

within series

Absolutely Smitten: their first meeting on the playground and what was going through Max’s head

Bubblegum Babe: set somewhere in s2, Liz spends her first night at Max’s after the resurrection

The One I Choose: 4x01 fix-it of sorts, in which Liz is the one proposing on the roof top

Alien Therapy: 4x02 fix-it-fic, in which Max and Liz discuss the repercussions of him threatening Anatsa

Sexual Healing: 4x09 fix-it-fic, in which Liz accepts her whole self and Max sees her faults and loves her easily (threesome’s solve everything apparently)

Biblical: post series, Max is on book tour and has to miss Liz’s birthday

Meet Me by the Ocean: post series, beach wedding

Happily Ever After: post series, a look into their everyday lives

you could be a bumper car, bumping: post series, Liz picks Max up from work (written for RNMAfterDark22)

Supergalactic Lover: post series, Liz arrives at the CrashDown to do some wedding planning and finds Max in an unexpected condition

to be totally locked up by you: post series, their beach wedding; with dancing and sibling bickering

Husbandly Duty: post series, established relationship, smut, they’re literally that married couple

cause this is my game and you better come to play: post series, smut (forewarning: this is a kink fic)

The Ugly Bug Ball: Max and Liz meet at a black tie event thrown by Rosa’s art gallery and immediately hit it off

as long as the sea is bound to wash upon the sand: mermaid au, Liz is a marine biologist who stumbles upon a mermaid trapped in a net, and decides to catch and release- except the releasing but is more complicated than she assumed

Kyliz:

within series

Miss Americano & the Heartbreak Prince: highschool era, Liz seeks comfort in their relationship

Sexy Dirty Love: pre-2x04, a look at why Kyle was at Max’s place so early in the morning (in other words it’s angsty smut)

Valevans:

within series

Doctor, Deputy: lost decade, they have a hate-sex thing going, idk why

capti a vobis: s2-ish, TVD crossover

Damn Valenti: pre-s3, established relationship/secret relationship and Taylor Swift drag night

Home Grown: pre-s3, Kyle forces Max to help build raised garden beds in his yard, so they can grow tomatoes

Lover: pre-s3, established relationship, angst, Max is dying need I say more?

Use Me Absolutely: 3x03, their fight scene but without clothes

You Got Time, You’re on the Mend, Babe: 3x05, the missing scene of Max getting Kyle all snuggled up, but he gets to snuggle a different alien

You and Her, Cosmic: 3x13, Kyle prepping Max for the adrenaline extraction leads to them discussing their unresolved sexual tension

Alien Cuffs: post s-3, established relationship, Kyle retrieves the un-alienified Valenti radio from Guerin’s grotto, and borrows something else

I’ll Stop the World and Melt With You: post s3, getting together fic, Kyle finds himself seeking comfort from Max after a long day

Swing Life Away: Highschool all human au, in which Kyle, Alex, and Liz start noticing strange things about the Evans triplets after they move into town, and decide to investigate (mutant powers, malex, and lizobel)

Treading Water: sequel to Swing Life Away, all human au, Kyle&Alex&Isobel open up their PI practice while Michael and Liz pursue other careers, Max deciding to work for Michelle Valenti and switching his life plans at the last moment, all while they search for Bonnie Parker

Wanna See What’s Under that Attitude: fake dating Christmas au, in which they’ve been enemies for over a decade but Max needs a boyfriend and doesn’t know who else to ask

Drunk on a Plane: Kyle and Max meet on a flight to Mexico, one to his sisters wedding the other to his solo honeymoon

Kaliz:

within series

Restless?: ambiguous timing, there was only one bed

Our Hearts Beat as One: ambiguous timing, in which Kyle is dosed with sex pollen and communication ensues

Paper Rings: 2x06, Max tries flirting with Kyle but it goes over his head, after regaining his memories he and Liz make a gesture

Cubed (or the Power of Three): 3x04, Jones runs into Kyle in his office (Jones/Kyle)

Could it be I got my wish?: post s-3, Max throws a Halloween movie night and echo attempts to seduce Kyle

If we’re made of stardust…: angsty soulmate au (malex, rosabel)

Meet Cute: Kyle runs into a couple at the movie theater

Sugar Sweet: christmas all human au, Liz gathers a team to beat Maria in a gingerbread house competition (background malexa)

Kybel:

within series

I Forgot that You Existed: pre-s3, Maria and Isobel help Kyle through his break up (Maria/Kyle)

That Damn Valenti Code: Kyle and Greg discuss Isobel and Kyle’s new found feelings

My Final Touch, Your Fatal Curse: post s-3, Kyle and Isobel get together

Kissable: post s3, Kyle borrows Iz’s clothes and makeup

Lizobel:

within series

Baby, I’ll Treat You Right: au pre-2x05, just smut (written for RNMAfterDark22)

Pod Squad:

within series

the futures in the hand that you hold: pre-series, Max and Isobel’s first meeting (Max&Isobel)

Suddenly Everything Changed: 3x01, Michael is alone when he meets up with Max in the pod cave and learns about his heart failing (Max&Michael)

Three Becomes Four: 3x10, in which Michael and Isobel reach out to Dallas without omitting Max’s existence (Dallas&Michael&Isobel)

Decisions Not Temptations: post 3x10, after his calls to Michael and Isobel fail Max calls Kyle who brings the newest alien in tow (Max&Dallas)

The Perfect Marshmallow: post s3, they got camping and Isobel’s brothers tease her about Kyle (Max&Isobel&Michael, Kybel at heart)

Pod People: 4x02, Isobel returns home to find a sad Max on her couch and she comforts him through the denied marriage proposal

Hygge: Jim makes sure Michael gets adopted into a good family (baby Michael & baby Kyle)

søskende: sequel to Hugge, Michael reunites with Max&Iz (Michael&Max&Isobel)

Rosallas:

within series

I Woke Up in Mid-Afternoon: post s3, Rosa and Dallas grow closer while she shows him all of Roswell’s secret places

Then Woo Me: post s3, Rosa helps Dallas out with the creative aspects of his work

Tuchans:

within series

Scientist Kink: pre-s3 through 3x09, Max and Heath hookup during the gap year and Max deals with the emotional fallout

What’s love got to do with it?: 3x12 (sequel to Scientist Kink), Max and Heath discuss Liz and Dallas

Joniz:

within series

Crimson Red Paint on My Lips: 3x11, in which their brunch gets kinky (written for RNMAfterDark22)

Jones/Kyle:

within series

Birds Singing in the Sycamore Tree: 3x06, Jones finds more than just his sword (hints of Max/Kyle)

Cruel Summer: Jones has a thing for Valenti’s idk, he’s more sexual during their two interactions

Clones

within series

the Allure of Darkness: pre-series, Clyde’s relationship with Jones and Bonnie on Oasis

Anatsobel:

within series

To Touch Things From Another World: 4x04, Isobel gets to take her girlfriend to the pod caves

Guertecho:

Burn for You: 1x01, in which Liz and Michael dated during senior year of high school, before he broke her heart right after her sister died, now ten years later she runs into him at the Wild Pony

forever is the sweetest con: 1x09, in which Max’s high school crush was just that, and Liz takes a moment to comfort Michael in respect to his sister, because if she can understand anything it’s losing a loved one

Guerenti:

within series

I Think He Knows: lost decade, Kyle and Michael hook up shortly after Kyle moves back to Roswell

Malexa:

within series

Ours: post s3, Michael, Alex, and Maria agree to take care of a baby left at the sheriff’s office (accidental baby acquisition)

Mylex:

within series

Inner Sanctum: post s3, Kyle learns how to feel at peace within Michael and Alex’s house

Forlex:

within series

gonna learn to love you right: pre-3x01, Forrest joined Alex in his mission between the seasons allowing them to grow closer, and he green lights Alex pursuing Michael (pre- Michael/Alex/Forrest)

Max/Michelle Valenti:

within series

Baby, Pull Me Closer: lost decade, Max still needs to shave cause grooming standards

Miscellaneous:

within series

Shania & Soda: pre-series, Michelle lets loose and dances with her son and husband

Happy Home: 3x05, Kyle & Liz discuss the implications of Jones vs. Max on the drive

What Did We Miss?: post 3x08, Max and Kyle get caught up during the three day gap

Family Ain’t Blood: 3x12, Michael and Maria take a moment to make sure Walt is okay before going after Jones

She’s the Best Thing That You’ll Ever Have: Kyle laments never being the right guy while helping the ‘right’ guy out (ends in Kybel or Valevans or neither)

a partner to ride with you when I can’t: 4x10 missing scene, Max&Rosa discuss his decision to get his powers back

The Better Kisser: post s3, Max, Kyle, and Heath hang out at the Pony and make out for science

An Eternity of Misery: canon divergent 1x05, the pod squad make Liz leave town, and Max/Jenna fall in love

Man and the Serpent: canon divergent s3, Max doesn’t get healed, Kyle&Rosa discuss love and loss

Familia: Kyle is sick and the Ortecho’s take care of him

High Infidelity: Jim Valenti/Michelle Valenti, in which Michelle confronts Jim about Jesse Manes

our only defense to brave the wilderness: Max/Dallas, Christmas fic, fluff, getting together

between the woods and frozen lake: Isobel/Anatsa/Liz, Christmas fic, fluff, gift exchange

cause it’s a long road to wisdom, but it’s a short one to being ignored: (Arturo&Michelle&Anne) they bond over parenthood and their kids secretly dating

#rnm fic #rnm #roswell new mexico #rnm echo #valevans #kaliz #kybel #and a bunch of other fics really #like guertecho and kyliz and Anatsobel and lizobel

30 notes · View notes

thetomorrowshow · 2 years

Text

it’s you

DEADCEMBER DAY 31 - Sunrise/Sunset

hey folks I’ve been really unwell all day so if there are some typos that I haven’t managed to edit out, just lmk and I’ll fix em!

fandom: Empires SMP

cw: character death, world-ending events.

They’re on a date, and it’s going swimmingly.

Scott blushes when Jimmy offers him flowers, snow flurries shaking from his hair when he glances away. Jimmy can’t help but grin—normally it’s Scott flustering him. This is a nice change that certainly won’t last.

He takes him out in a rowboat, to a sacred little grotto where lovers from both the Cod Empire and the Ocean Kingdom often sneak out to. Legend has it that if a couple kisses here when the moon shines in from above and bathes the whole place in its light, their love will last forever. Around the grotto on lilypads and dripleaf, small offerings float in hope that a love will develop to be worthy of the grotto. Jimmy gulps as they pass an offering of his own that he’d placed just this morning—a nugget of gold, their initials carved painstakingly into it. He quickly averts his eyes, not wanting Scott to notice. Scott’s eyes, however, are glued somewhere else: when Jimmy dips the oars into the water, his muscles ripple and his strong chest puffs out.

They gently push into the grotto, vines curling around them and long branches of flower buds hanging down on the borders of the water. It’s almost completely still—a tiny slime hops to and fro in the shallows, and crickets chirp from all around, but it’s otherwise a beauty frozen in time. Even the water barely moves as they slide through it to the center of the pool, not stagnant but clear, the sandy clay several feet below almost shimmering. The lantern on the tip of their little boat manages to light up the entire area, catching on the veins of the vines and branches, making them glow golden.

Scott glances around in awe, his eyes wider than Jimmy’s ever seen them. He leans over the side of the boat (Jimmy shifts his weight to ensure there’s no capsizing), trails his fingertips in the water. Glasslike ice follows his hand, vanishing as he pulls away.

“This place . . . it’s beautiful,” Scott murmurs, turning back to Jimmy. Jimmy beams, lays the oars in the water beside him where they float, the water grasping them briefly before laying still again. He’s not sure if it’s his magic or Lizzie’s causing it, but he hopes it’s his. This is a private moment.

“I thought you might like it,” Jimmy replies, rummaging under his seat for something. His hands grasp on the glass neck of a bottle, which he brings forward and offers to Scott. Brow raised, Scott rests his hands on the bottle. Under Jimmy’s fingers, the bottle cools.

“Are we meant to take turns, or. . . ?”

Jimmy laughs. “I brought glasses too, don’t worry your little head about it.”

Scott pours their drinks. Jimmy stops him before he puts too much in his glass—he doesn’t want to be drunk. He wants to remember this night for all his life. It doesn’t matter much for Scott, of course—elves have a high alcohol resistance, and Scott rarely goes beyond slightly tipsy.

They sit in silence for a while, sipping from their glasses from time to time. Scott gazes around at the pool, taking in every detail. Jimmy hopes he doesn’t know what this is. The grotto is a well-guarded secret; any outsider brought within is made to swear that they will tell no one. And while Jimmy’s sure that Scott not only will not tell others about this place, but also will not reject him tonight, he can’t help but be nervous. This isn’t a proposal, but it very much is a promise.

The moon is getting close to being right above them, so Jimmy flicks his wrist a few times and water leaps up, extinguishing their lantern. Scott whirls around, trying to find where the source of their light went, and Jimmy chuckles. He places his glass in the water beside the oars and takes Scott’s from him, before grasping Scott’s pale hands in his.

“Darling, do you mind telling me something?” Scott’s voice lilts humorously, and Jimmy feels his fins heat.

“Yeah?”

“Why are we sitting here in the dark?”

“Just wait. Only a few more minutes, now.”

While they wait, they chat. Pointless conversation—complaints of mountains of paperwork, inquiries after friends and relatives, compliments thrown here and there. It eventually morphs into a game of not-so-secretly trying to fluster the other, which Jimmy thinks he wins when he stretches far enough that his shirt rides up and Scott hides his face in his hands, but he knows he loses when Scott gently tucks his hair behind his fin and fingers the tip of it.

Jimmy’s heart stutters when he realizes that the area has slowly been lightening. Scott doesn’t seem to notice, and he keeps flirting until they are suddenly bathed in moonlight.

The elf looks up with a gasp, and Jimmy knows it has to be now, this is it, it’s time to seal the deal—

He gently takes Scott’s chin in his hand and turns him toward him. Scott’s eyes are sparkling with stars, so deep and gorgeous and even if it wasn’t time, Jimmy wouldn’t be able to resist his lover. He leans forward until their lips meet, the hand on his chin sliding up to his cheek, the other awkwardly hanging in midair until Scott grabs it and places it on his own back. Scott giggles into the kiss, and Jimmy melts, fireworks going off behind his eyes.

He hears splashes around him and catches a glimpse of water shooting in arcs above them. He rolls his eyes exasperatedly; of course Lizzie’s been paying attention. He tilts his head a bit, deepening the kiss. His heart leaps when he feels Scott shiver beneath his hands, and he pushes forward more until—

Scott pulls away, hands resting on Jimmy’s chest. His cheeks are flushed, breath coming heavy, the little braid framing his face out of place. Jimmy doesn’t have time to admire the sight, though, because something in Scott’s face concerns him. Scott stares up, brows furrowed, into the sky. Before Jimmy can ask what’s wrong, Scott speaks, hesitant, confused.

“Jimmy—is the moon big?”

Katherine surveys the table before her. It’s thirty minutes past the pre-arranged meeting time, yet not everyone is here.

The chair directly to her left is empty. Beside that chair is fWhip, his fingers tapping endlessly on the table, his goggles slipping through his messy hair. Sat beside fWhip is Scott, who bites the inside of his cheek and glances around nervously. His hand is in Jimmy’s beside him, who picks at the collar of his shirt and gazes at Scott.

Next to Jimmy is Joel, who appears normal, but, like Scott, can’t seem to stay focused on one thing. At the opposite end of the table from Katherine, hand lightly clasped in Joel’s, Lizzie is bent over the table, head resting in her arms.

Rounding the corner from the Ocean Queen is Pixl, whose eyes are closed, brow furrowed. He appears to be almost meditating. Joey is on his left, picking at his nails. Shrub is in the next chair, head barely above the table, kicks her legs in the air and frowns around at them. The chair beside her is empty. Closest to Katherine on her right is Sausage, reclining in his seat, one leg up over the arm of the chair. His face is the picture of relaxation—or it would be, if not for the crease in his brow.

“Has anyone seen Pearl or Gem?” she asks, by way of beginning the meeting. Everyone shakes their head. fWhip runs his hands through his hair.

“I haven’t seen Gem in days,” he says, frazzled. “I don’t know what happened. Her students said she disappeared over the weekend.”

That is at least as concerning as everything else, but isn’t their biggest focus. Gem isn’t a ruler and Pearl’s empire is fairly self-sufficient, so even if both women are gone, that isn’t the immediate concern. The immediate concern is a certain celestial being.

“All right. Well, I’m sure you all know why this meeting has been called.”

General nods and noises of assent. They’re all quite aware of the situation. Joel squeezes Lizzie’s hand, and the Ocean Queen lifts her head from the table.

Lizzie looks terrible. Dark bags hang under her sunken eyes, deep lines in her face make her more haggard than ever. Her hair is missing its usual shine, and her eyelids droop as if she can barely hold them up.

“The moon is getting closer,” she says without preamble. “I’ve—I’ve been doing everything I can to keep the ocean in check, but the waves are getting bigger and stronger and I won’t be able to hold it off for much longer. Please beach any ships you may have and prepare for hurricanes.” With that, she slumps again, having said what she needed to say.

Joel rubs her shoulder, then glares around at everyone, as if they are the cause of his wife’s distress. Katherine can’t find it in her heart to be offended at the implied slight, but fWhip snorts and Joey harrumphs. Jimmy raises his hand hesitantly.

“I’ll do what I can for the ocean, but it’s not really my domain,” he says. “I agree with Lizzie. If you’ve got settlements near the ocean, I’d evacuate them.”

“What does that mean for you?” Katherine asks curiously. Jimmy lives practically on the ocean, after all, with much of his empire built on platforms just above the water and the rest of it set on the banks of the swamp. Jimmy shrugs.

“Probably just do my best to hold off the worst of the storms. We’ve survived worse.”

“Okay, but—what does this all mean?” Shrub butts in, standing on the seat of her chair. “The moon is getting closer. Is it the end of the world or something?”

Mutters break out around the table and Katherine raises her hands for quiet. They don’t have time to panic, especially since Shrub’s suggestion is entirely possible. They need to keep level heads and form a plan.

“The world isn’t ending,” she says firmly, as everyone falls silent. “It’s just going through a new phase, okay? So we need to make some adjustment plans for whatever comes next. Who here can volunteer to track the moon’s size and distance from the earth?”

The world is ending, and soon, everyone knows it.

The only way they can think to escape is some sort of travel into space, but it’s unheard of. Even fWhip, the ruler of the most technologically advanced empire, has nothing. Everybody has nothing.

Lizzie collapses soon after the House Blossom meeting, and empires near the ocean feel the difference. The seas are dangerous now, all travel restricted to the land for the foreseeable future. Sausage sends out daily moon updates from his tracking of it, until suddenly he and the occupants of his entire kingdom vanish. Nobody mentions it after Jimmy’s report of the empty lands, and Pixl takes up the moon measurements.

Shubble is the first to report floating pieces of earth. She struggles to pull them down to ground, jumping back in surprise when they fall back into place without prompting. Soon the land of all empires is choppy with fallen earth and stone.

Two weeks after the troubles are noticed, Katherine calls another House Blossom meeting. It is there that all empires present (three ostensibly absent) agree that emergency measures must be taken. The world, to all intents and purposes, is ending.

Bunkers are the safest route, most agree. Shubble volunteers to take her citizens to the Nether, fWhip his to the End. Everyone else intends on bunkers, with options to flee for citizens who don’t believe in the safety of the bunkers.

It’s a grim meeting, even more so when the gravity seems to vanish for a moment and all of the rulers are left clinging to their chairs. Jimmy and Scott immediately grab onto each other, Shubble nearly flies away entirely, Joel holds Lizzie down by her sleeve. Before anyone can say anything, they’re back down in their seats and everything seems normal again.

Nobody else speaks for the rest of the meeting, and when Katherine dismisses them, they leave in silence.

The world self-destructs at an exponential rate after that. Blocks shoot up into the sky higher and higher until they no longer return, the moon grows larger every night, people find themselves as high up as thirty feet before they slowly fall to the ground.

Scott knows it’s the last day when the sun rises and the moon doesn’t set.

His bunkers are dug at the bottom of the valley between the mountains of Rivendell, and the evacuation that he began yesterday he now speeds up. He jumps into line along with everyone else, rolling barrels of dried mutton into the bunkers, checking houses himself to ensure that they’re empty, setting free all the animals he can find. Hopefully they’ll be able to escape. He can’t say he believes they will, with the way one of the horses instantly begins to float and doesn’t return to the ground.

Everyone is safely underground by evening. The world is positively shaking, blocks shooting up left and right. Scott can barely stay on the ground himself, so he stops trying. He spreads his wings and with a few powerful beats of them, lifts off.

The world is bathed in the red-orange light of the setting sun. Behind him, a fiery meteor crashes into the church. Scott grimaces, but he can’t do anything to save the house of worship. He has to focus on his people.

And one other.

The Prisma Palace has collapsed in on itself. Scott hopes that all the denizens of the Ocean Kingdom are safe as he flies by, but he doesn’t have time to stop and check on them. He has to get to the Cod Empire.

As he falls closer to the ground, he can make out people running all over. Where’s the bunker? Why isn’t everyone already safely underground? And then, in the center of town, he can see a certain lime green emperor.

Jimmy can’t still be up here, it’s too dangerous. Scott wheels to the side to avoid a hurled boulder, which crashes into a house on the edge of the ocean. The movements of the people below grow more erratic.

For the first time in his life, Scott has to use rockets. He can’t dive down; he somersaults to face down but goes nowhere but up. He luckily has a few—he’s not sure how long they’ve been in his pack, but he extracts them and shoots downward.

“Jimmy!” he calls once he’s close enough. Jimmy doesn’t look up, too occupied with his task. “Jim—”

Scott’s cut off as a massive wave knocks him out of the sky entirely. The shouts of Jimmy’s people, the rumbling of the moon, the crackling of fire—all sounds are snuffed out as he’s buried in water.

His wings drag him down as he tries to kick up—if up is where he’s headed: he’s disoriented and can’t see and his whole body stings from the wave slamming into him. Panic chokes up his throat just as water chokes down, and he can’t breathe he’s stuck he doesn’t know how to escape—

Somehow his head bursts above water, and he has a moment to cough, water flying from his nose and mouth. Then he’s dunked under again, and violently shoved forward as another wave hits his back.

The next time he surfaces, he shoves breathing to the back burner. “Jimmy!” he screams, his voice tearing. “Jimmy!” He can’t see anything, the blurry world is on fire, the water is blood red around him, and he’s going to drown here if Jimmy doesn’t hear him. Before he can shout anything else, he’s shoved down again by the waves piling atop him.

This time he blacks out, he’s almost certain of it. One moment he’s being crushed under mountains of water, his lungs filling with it, and the next he’s sucking in air, water barely lapping at his feet, someone strong pulling him away by his armpits.

He blinks a few times, coughing until his chest aches, and above him is Jimmy, cod head gone, a nasty cut through his brow dripping blood down his temple. Jimmy drops him in the marshy ground of the bog, and Scott scrambles to grab onto the swamp grass lest gravity pull him away.

“Can you walk?” yells Jimmy, because they have to yell to be heard over the end of the world. The moon roars louder than ever, only amplified by the panicked shouting and screaming and the meteors flying to earth at record speed.

Scott nods and pulls himself up with Jimmy’s shirt, only to be knocked to the ground with a tremor so bad that the earth cracks apart at his feet. Jimmy shouts and drags him back; Scott’s scrambling feet knock showers of loose dirt into the crack as he just manages to escape falling down it.

He glances up at Jimmy, who gives him a look of pure fear. He almost died there. Then someone screams Jimmy’s name and he looks away, back to the town. He drags Scott up and starts running, back to his people. Scott stumbles after, and in a moment of selfishness, he doesn’t care about the citizens of the Cod Empire. He just wants to drag Jimmy into one of the bunkers and lock it shut until it’s safe to come out.

The center of town is chaos. People are screaming, sobbing, shoving one another to the ground in their hurry to escape. Jimmy is frantically reinforcing a bunker door, right next to the smithies and stonemasons with the knowledge to build the things. A young woman is directing people to another newly completed bunker, down the street from this unfinished one. A house crashes down the next street over and everyone ducks, covering their heads as debris falls. A good portion of it floats up.

Scott grabs Jimmy by the shoulders and drags him away from his work, ignoring his flailing arms. “Get in the bunker,” he shouts in his ear. Jimmy shakes his head stubbornly and throws him off. Scott falls slowly to the ground.

“You get in the bunker! I have to help!”

Curse Jimmy and his bleeding heart. He scrambles up and grabs Jimmy by the back of his shirt, but Jimmy’s ready this time and shakes him off.

“They need someone to lead them!” Jimmy yells desperately, and Scott can see his eyes glisten with tears in the red-orange light. “I’ve got to help!”

“Yeah, but they’ll need someone to lead after, too!” Scott shouts back, tugging at his ears in frustration. “Your safety is the most important!”

Jimmy grabs his shoulders and shakes him; Scott grips the front of Jimmy’s shirt to keep from floating up. There’s a crazed look on Jimmy’s face when he shouts, “I promised, Scott! I promised to keep them safe! I have to do this!”

Jimmy’s not going to go to safety. He’s not going to hide. He’s going to save as many people as he can.

Scott can’t bear a life without him.

Jimmy’s already released him, picked up a shovel to toss some dirt out of the way of the muttering woman with her hand on the newly-installed door. The dirt flies straight up as he throws it behind him.

Scott doesn't think before stepping in line, scooping up a chunk of obsidian to place in the mortar where the masons are patching the outer wall of the bunker. He’s barely had time to place it when strong arms wrap around his waist and lift him away. He cries out and kicks, but Jimmy only grunts and then gasps when they’re both suddenly airborne.

They hold onto each other for a few moments, then start floating down again. As soon as their feet touch the ground, Jimmy pushes him in the direction of the fleeing crowd. “Get in the bunker!”

Scott laughs shrilly. He thinks the effect is rather ruined by the tears streaming down his face. “If you’re staying, I’m staying!”

Jimmy’s face crumples, but he nods and gets back to work. Scott falls in beside him, and with each task they complete, their hands brush against each other. Even if he wanted to, there’s no way Scott’s getting back to Rivendell. The wind’s picked up and the waves are reaching so high there’s no way he would be able to cross safely.

The bunker doesn’t get completed, but they have to hope it’s good enough. Most of the townsfolk left rush in, but there are still too many who don’t fit. Too many who look to Jimmy and wail.

Blood from the cut drips sluggishly down Jimmy’s cheek, mixing with the dirt that coats him, and he does nothing but start digging again at the first open patch of land he can find. Scott follows, begging him to stop. The wind whips his words away where they drown in the deafening sound of the moon.

There’s not enough time to build another bunker. Scott can actually see details of the moon, rocks and flames and the edges blurring as it speeds ever closer. He thinks they have maybe fifteen minutes, if he’s being generous. Jimmy doesn’t stop digging, not until the handle snaps under the weight of a boulder and Jimmy breaks down.

“I have to save them!” he screams, and Scott is there to catch him when he falls to his knees. Villagers scatter around them, some running into the forest, others seeking protection from the collapsed buildings. Scott wraps Jimmy in the tightest hug he can, feeling his partner’s breath stutter against him.

“You can’t,” Scott yells, his voice cracking, and Jimmy takes one more moment to sob dryly before he’s standing, exhaustion mixing with despair on his face.

He pulls Scott as he runs through town, legs windmilling for minutes at a time when they go straight up and slowly land again. He drags him until they come as close to the shore as possible without getting beaten down by the monstrous waves, and there’s nothing in their way as they gaze at the moon.

If it weren’t so loud, Scott might think the moon beautiful, in a terrible way. Every color of the rainbow is caught in the fire lining it and the meteors that shoot off beside it. A huge chunk of earth nearby tears itself from the ground and floats ever upward, disappearing from view.

Scott and Jimmy stand there, hand in hand, until Jimmy pulls Scott down to the ground and wraps his arm around his shoulders. Scott scoots closer until his head rests on Jimmy’s pec. There they sit, two lovers curled around each other, watching as the world ends.

When Scott can, he tears his eyes away from the moon to gaze up at Jimmy. His beloved is crying, which makes sense because Scott is too, but it hurts because he never wants to see him cry. He reaches up with one hand, wipes the tears and dirt from his cheek. His hair is sticking up in odd places, just like it always does, and that bit of normalcy is all Scott needs to know that although it’s all wrong, although they're meant to have a long, happy life, he’s all right as long as Jimmy is here. Jimmy’s eyes flick down to him, and there’s so much adoration in his gaze that Scott can’t help but kiss him, slow and soft.

Their lips part gently, and Scott buries his face in Jimmy’s chest, breathing in his scent. Jimmy says something that he can’t hear, but the feeling of his chest rumbling against his cheek is almost comforting.

The earth is shaking constantly now. The sound grows louder and louder, and Scott’s still crying, his hands twisting in Jimmy’s shirt, but Jimmy only plants a kiss in his hair and hugs him closer.

It’s the end of the world, and the only person to watch is the young cod emperor, his arms holding his lover close to his chest. He watches as his home burns behind him, watches the moon grow ever closer ever faster. When the light of it becomes too great to bear, and the blast so loud it rattles his teeth, and the force knocks them flat on their backs, Jimmy rolls over onto Scott, his eyes squinted shut as he hugs him tight and prays with all his might that Scott may be spared.

It’s the end of the world, and it’s cruel. It tears home from family, the earth from itself, lover from lover. But these lovers hold to each other and they don’t let go, and when the world ends, it ends in their embrace.

114 notes · View notes

angelasscribbles · 3 years

Text

Complicated Part 10: Blue Grotto

Series: Complicated

Fandom: The Royal Romance

Pairings: Liam x Riley, Drake x Riley

Rating: NSFW

Warnings: Language, adult themes

My other stuff: Master List.

Liam paced back and forth on the beach trying to compose his thoughts. What if she didn’t show up? He still had no idea what he was going to say to her.

When he had returned from the rooftop, she had been nowhere to be found. Apparently, he had missed Maxwell proposing to Riley, but really it turned out to be to…gelato?

The moment everything wound down enough, he had searched for Maxwell and couldn’t find him either, so he had left instructions with Bertrand to get word to her. He had to see her, and it couldn’t wait.

When he saw her walking up the beach, relief flooded through him. He ran forward and swept her into his arms, pressing her close and dropping his head down to take her by the lips. They stood entwined on the beach for an endless moment as he kissed her like he would never see her again. When he pulled away, he pressed his forehead to hers and sighed happily. It felt right, holding her there on the beach in the moonlight and he never wanted to let go.

“There’s something I want to talk to you about. It’s about our future.”

He had intended to ask her about Drake once they made it to the grotto, but somehow they ended stripping down and jumping in the water instead.

He couldn’t help it, when he was with her, it was like all his problems just melted away. The way she kissed him told him how she felt. He was sure of it. When he offered her the pearl he had found, her eyes softened, and she gave him a smile that he was sure wasn’t fake.

He noticed her shivering, so they climbed out of the water and onto an outcropping of rock just above the water level. He settled himself on the rock then pulled her into him, using his body heat to warm her. She leaned on him, and he kissed the top of her head, then he leaned his head on hers. He sat like that for a few minutes, eyes closed, taking in her scent, the way she felt in his arms.

Riley broke the spell by asking, “You had something you wanted to talk about?”

He pulled away from her a little as visions swam through his head of Drake staring at her longingly, of Drakes arm draped around her waist like it belonged there, of Drake’s admission that he was in love with her. He sighed. “Yes, perhaps I’ve been avoiding it.” He absolutely had. “These past few weeks have been so hard on both of us. I have been putting one foot in front of the other to get through it, but…living like this….it isn’t fair to you. I’ve never felt so powerless.”

It wasn’t what he had been planning to say, but as he had been about to bring up Drake, another thought had occurred to him. A possible solution. He was frustrated and angry that he wasn’t able to be by her side like Drake was. The only reason he couldn’t be was because of the crown. That was the problem.

“There’s only one action I can take to change this.”

“And what’s that?” she asked.

“Abdicating the throne.”

“What?”

“Ever since my brother abdicated, I’ve known I would marry for the benefit of Cordonia. I had made peace with that. But then I met you, and I allowed myself to hope that I could marry for Cordonia and for love. Now….” Everything he was saying was true and would be true regardless of Drake’s feelings, but the fear of losing her had pushed him to a drastic decision.

“I don’t want a loveless marriage,” he continued, “and I’d never have anything more than that with Madeleine. Or with anyone that isn’t you.” He reached out and tucked a stray stand of hair behind her ear, then slid his hand along her jawline to cup her chin and tilt her face up toward him.

“Riley, I love you, I want you! I’m so sorry for what I’ve put you through in the name of the crown. It was never what I wanted. From the night I met you, you’ve been what I wanted! The entire social season was a torment, not being able to spend time with you like I wanted, to touch you, hold you, make love to you. I’m sorry I wasn’t there for you. I’m sorry I didn’t stop them from dragging you out of the coronation ball, sorry I didn’t go straight to the airport myself to bring you back and I’m sorry that I didn’t propose to you that night. I’m sorry that I have to pretend not to be in love with you even now, and for everything I know you’ve had to put up with from Madeleine.”

Saying it out loud, he realized just how much he had put her through, what she had endured because of him and for him. He hadn’t been there for her like he should have been, he wasn’t able to be there for her now, not like Drake was. She deserved so much more. He wanted to give it to her.

“Liam.” She touched his face, running her fingertips gently down his cheek and across his lips. He closed his eyes and relaxed into her touch. He knew in that moment that he would give her anything she asked, always.

“What would that even look like?” She watched him with concern. She knew his duties and responsibilities were important to him. She couldn’t ask him to give that up for her. But it was nice to pretend.

They sat, entwined with each other talking and laughing about an imaginary life where they left court and all of its issues behind.

Liam sighed, “It’s a nice thought, isn’t it?”

“A really nice thought. But you can’t abdicate Liam. You wouldn’t be happy if you gave up the throne. It’s part of who you are. You’d resent me for it eventually. In your heart, you know that.”

Liam felt his heart sink. If he remained on the throne, he would never be able to give her what she needed. He felt despair well up inside him. Maybe she would be better off with Drake, at least he could be with her openly.

“But what if things never get better?”

“At least you won’t be married to Madeleine. Thank God you found those laws.”

Liam laughed softly at that, “Yes, thank God! At least I, we, are spared that.”

“What if that wasn’t the case, what if you did have to marry Madeleine?”

“If that’s what it had taken to keep you safe, then I would have. I would have married a woman I despise, lived in a loveless marriage and been heartbroken and lonely for the rest of my life. I want nothing more than to be with you, but I would not let my selfishness put you in danger.”

“Oh, Liam.” She gazed up into his eyes then snaked a hand around his head to tangle in his hair and pull him down into a gentle kiss.

“I mean it Riley. I want to put the world at your feet. You deserve it.”

“I don’t need the world…just you.”

“Then that will carry me through, for now. It will have to.” He had never felt so unworthy of her as he did in that moment, but he had never wanted her more. He needed to know that she was his as completely as he was hers. His eyes swept down her naked body and she shivered at the heat in his gaze.

He pulled her tight against his bare chest, kissing her with an intensity that surprised her. His kisses always sent electricity sparking through her, but this kiss was more demanding than usual, more needy somehow. There was something primal in it and her body responded, wanting to give him the reassurance he was seeking.

Riley leaned into him and deepened the kiss, her heart thundering in her chest. He leaned back onto the outcropping, pulling her on top of him. She straddled him as his hands explored her body, their breathing quickening, desire heating her so that she no longer felt the chill of the air.

Liam showered kisses down her neck and chest as she shuddered with pleasure. His hand slipped between her legs and started moving in slow, tantalizing circles. Her head tipped back as she breathed out his name. He watched her, his eyes never leaving her face as she arched and twisted against him, reading her signals as he increased the pressure and speed until she cried out, her screams echoing off the walls. With a satisfied smile, he put his hands on her hips, as she positioned herself over him, ready to take him inside her.

He groaned out loud when she let her body slide down onto him, engulfing him. She was so tight, so warm, so perfectly right. His hips bucked up to meet her without a thought on his part, they moved together in perfect synchrony.

“Riley,” his voice was hoarse and low, “Riley, fuck, I love you so much.”

“Mmmm.” She moaned as she increased her speed, moving in just the right way to provide the friction she needed for her release. He matched her pace, his fingers tightening on her hips.

“Tell me you love me, Riley, tell me you’re mine. I need to hear it.”

“I love you! I..ah…ohhhhh…I…I’m…..Liam!”

He felt her tighten around him and he thrust up into her again as he exploded inside her, his cries joining hers.

She fell forward to lay on his chest, breathing ragged, both of their bodies now glistening with sweat.

“Best boat ride ever.” She teased him. He barked out a laugh at her unexpected comment. She always managed to surprise him, in the best possible ways. He tightened his arms around her as she slid off him and cuddled up under his arm, laying her head on his chest.

“I never want to leave this cave.” He murmured as his hand stroked her hair. He was happy and content and didn’t want to think about any of the obstacles that would be awaiting them the moment they left.

“Maybe we should spend the night here.” She lifted her head to smile up at him.

He laughed again, “I would like nothing more, but Bastien will come looking for me if I’m not back soon.” He sighed as reality sat back in.

After they got dressed, he helped her into the boat and rowed them back to shore, his conversation with Drake all but forgotten. Whatever feelings Drake had for Riley clearly had not affected Riley’s feelings for him and that’s all he needed to know.

Back on the beach, he kissed her goodbye, “I wish I could walk you back to the train myself, but…”

“Ah yes, scandal!” She smiled reassuringly at him.

“Precisely.” He motioned to Bastien, who appeared out of nowhere, as usual.

“Make sure she makes it back to the train safely please, then report back to me.”

“Yes, your majesty.” Bastien bowed then motioned for Riley to follow him.

Back in his own private train car, Liam reflected on the events of the night. He was still angry with Drake for not telling him that he had developed feelings for Riley, but those feelings didn’t seem to be mutual, maybe Riley wasn’t even aware of them. He really should have listened to what his best friend was trying to tell him, then he would know the answer to that. He felt a pang of guilt at the memory of punching him.

He convinced himself that he had misread the entire situation. He would have to apologize to Drake next time he saw him.

Liam poured himself a drink and settled into an overstuffed chair. There was a knock on the door, and he yelled, “Come in!”

Bastien entered the room with a bow, “Reporting back.”

“I trust she made it back to the train safely, Bas?”

“Yes, I watched her board the train myself.”

“Good.” He finished the drink and stood, gesturing to the drink cart, “Can I offer you anything?”

“No, I’m good.” Bastien hesitated as if he were going to say more, then changed his mind.

“Bas. What is it?”

“I…uh…I’m not sure if I should say anything.”

“Just spit it out man!” Liam had gone still, waiting for the bad news.

“She got on the train fine, but I was still outside about five minutes later talking to a couple of the guards and, uh, well…”

“God damn it Bastien, just say it already!”

“She left again.”

“She….left the train?”

Bastien nodded, “Yep.”

Confusion slowly gave way to a dawning realization, and he felt a sinking sensation in the pit of his stomach, “Not alone though?”

“No.”

He already knew the answer, but he asked anyway, “Who did she leave with, Bas?”

“Drake Walker.”

“Son of a bitch!” He threw the empty glass across the room, and it shattered as it hit the wall.

“Should I have followed them?”

“What?” He ran both hands over his face as he looked at Bastien, “No. No, I won’t invade her privacy like that.”

“Should we, uh… remove him from her detail?”

Liam blinked rapidly. That thought had never even occurred to him. “No.” He replied without hesitation. There was still no one better at the job, still no one else he’d trust with her safety.

“It’s ok, Bas. You can go.”

He sank back into the chair, mind working furiously. He thought back to the time they had just spent together. She had told him she loved him, she had told him that she was his…….except that she hadn’t. He realized with a start that she had never actually said that part. She had made love to him and five minutes after getting back had left the train with Drake. He was sure she loved him, was he deluding himself?

It means nothing, he told himself. Drake was assigned to her security detail. He was supposed to go with her if she went out. If they were sleeping together, they wouldn’t have to leave the train, her room was right next to his, he knew, he had made sure of it. Drake had sworn to him that nothing like that was going on. He didn’t know what was going on. He realized that he needed to talk to his best friend again, and actually listen this time.

#choices #choices stories you play #choices fanfic #trr #trr fanfic #the royal romance fanfic #the royal romance #fics of the week #choices fanfic writers creations #drake walker #liam rys #drake x mc #liam x mc #drake x mc x liam #love triangle #complicated #angelasscibbles

34 notes · View notes

twilight-adamo · 5 years

Text

Author’s Notes: Brave New World, Chapter 3: Dreams and Wishes

https://archiveofourown.org/works/19709434/chapters/47618575

Almost two weeks since the last chapter! I fear we’re slowing down a bit, and will be slowing down a bit more as I turn my focus to other projects and spend a little more time laying foundations for the chapters to come. I’ve said previously that I have roughly the first eight chapters of this story properly outlined, and a general sense of where the story will go after that. Well, I am now almost halfway down the path I’ve already laid for myself, and we are done with the fluff. The time has come to double-check my research, fill in the details, and make some difficult decisions. And, in the process, I had probably better lay a bit more road.

This is easily the most fluffy and self-indulgent chapter I’ve written so far. I tried not to make it sound too much like a travelogue, and I tried to hit some beats that will become important later, but even so, I let myself do the literary equivalent of drawing a hot bubble bath and sinking into the water with a generously poured glass of wine. This chapter was so self-indulgent, in fact, that I wrote part of it ahead of Chapter 2, because I was feeling down and I wanted to write something that would make me happy. What’s coming up next is a lot of work - delving into Alice’s past, meeting up with vampires, discovering new mysteries - and I just wanted to let these four have a good time for a little while. And, of course, there are plot developments, but I guess I should put the rest under a cut for the sake of anyone who hasn’t yet read the chapter.

I’ve said that I’m trying to push Bella somewhat off the self-insert mark I set when I first began writing this story. That’s still very true, but I admit I pushed more of myself into this chapter than I have in a while. Disney World is easily one of my favorite places on Earth, and despite my criticisms of the corporation itself, I am a second-generation Disney fanatic. My mother was a big fan, too - the office in my family home was once covered in Disney memorabilia - and so indulging my fandom makes me feel close to her. I suppose I’ve only become more obsessive since she died.

I do also Disney Bound as a hobby - I’ve found I really like devising and perfecting outfits inspired by my favorite characters. I started with Ariel, of course (and will be debuting the third iteration of my Ariel Disney Bound on my vacation this year), and have since added outfits inspired by Belle, Rapunzel, Maleficent, and Rey to my repertoire. I also cosplay as Ariel and plan to start cosplaying as Rapunzel next year, but Bella isn’t quite that far gone down the road of geekery yet.

And, of course, there’s the proposal, which is absolutely me indulging a fantasy. I don’t know if I’ll ever get married - I’m not even in a serious relationship right now. But I’ve definitely thought about how my perfect proposal will go, and since I have no idea if it’ll ever happen, I decided to go ahead and write it into the story. I expect I’ll be fitting some details of my dream wedding into the story when the time comes as well.

Of course, in order to write my perfect proposal, I had to grapple with the fact that there wasn’t really a set location to meet Ariel in 2005 - New Fantasyland and Ariel’s Grotto wouldn’t open for a few years yet. She appeared at various character dining experiences, of course, but that wouldn’t be quite the intimate experience I wanted. I didn’t want to deal with homophobic reactions to a public proposal - I really didn’t want to write a fully public proposal at all - and I know from my experience attending Gay Days at Disney World in 2004 that, while other guests can be assholes, the cast members (i.e. staff and performers) at Disney are usually cool. Ariel’s Grotto only admits a few people at a time, so it was perfect for my needs. It just...didn’t exist yet.

But there was nothing really preventing most of New Fantasyland from existing back then, and as I turned the idea over in my head, it occurred to me that this was another opportunity to show that the world Bella had found herself in wasn’t precisely the world she remembered. Fragments of her desires and her memories - and those of others - shaped this new world. Moreover, her cognitive dissonance over the resort being somewhat off afforded me the opportunity to show that all is not entirely well with her, not just yet.

I’ve dropped a few hints of this so far. First, there was Eleazar’s reaction when he examined her powers toward the end of As Dreams Are Made On. Then there was the dream that opened Chapter 1 of Brave New World. And now we have these little episodes when Bella runs into something that doesn’t quite seem to fit, something that nags at the half-abandoned, half-forgotten recesses of her mind. There is more to come, and this will feed into one of the major plot threads of this second book.

The Haunted Mansion is absolutely my favorite ride, and it is in fact a tradition of mine that it’s my first ride on any Disney vacation if possible, followed by a stop in Adventureland for a Dole Whip float. I wasn’t really going to write a scene there, but...well. I don’t want to say too much. Suffice to say that this world is stranger than even the Cullens realize, and this story will bring them in contact with things they never imagined. I wanted to raise the possibility. (And I did in fact live in a haunted house as a teenager. My experience wasn’t precisely as Bella describes, though I made use of the broad strokes. I’ve told the story before on other accounts - I don’t think I’ll repeat it here and now. Perhaps another time.)

The Adventurers Club was one of my favorite spots at Disney World, particularly when I returned as an adult. Sadly it closed in 2008, and has since been torn down and replaced with a restaurant - none of the old Pleasure Island is still there, really. Elements of the old Club have been woven into Disney lore across the world, and there have been reunions of the actors and inductions of new members now and then, but the Club itself is no more. Since I was doing a bunch of self-indulgent shit anyway, I figured it was a good place for our heroes to stop for a drink and celebrate the engagement.

I decided a while ago that Rosalie would be Bella’s maid of honor. This is partly for the reason she gives - she wants Callie, another experienced witch who is familiar with Bella’s own beliefs, to officiate - and partly because I think Callie and Bella’s relationship has grown somewhat strained over time. They’re still good friends and even sisters, but the simple fact of the matter is that Bella has become a wholehearted part of this world while Callie is still holding part of herself back. That’s a fundamental disagreement, and it’s hard to get over something like that. Multiple people have told me Callie is their favorite character, so don’t worry, she’s not going anywhere, and she and Bella aren’t about to break off their friendship, but it’s going to take time for them to rediscover who they are to one another. In the meantime, Bella and Rosalie have grown extremely close, finding a sisterly relationship that Rose doesn’t quite share even with Alice, so the maid of honor thing felt fairly inevitable.

If it feels like the chapter ends on a slightly ominous note, well. To some degree it does. Bella is trying to be realistic without becoming entirely pessimistic, and there are in fact dark and difficult times ahead. Next stop: Biloxi, and Alice’s past. It’s not exactly going to be another trip to the theme parks, I fear.

Thanks, as always, for reading.

#twilight #twilight fanfiction #twilight fanfic #twlight au #bellice #the tempest trilogy #the tempestverse #brave new world

2 notes · View notes