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My Top 5 Fics of 2018
Dec. 29th, 2018 08:40 pmMy top works that were 1000 words or longer, according to my (completely baseless) formula that weights kudos, bookmarks/subscriptions, and comments.
5) The Pillow Trove Fitness Challenge (Sexual Frustration Now Included)
Description: Beau just needs a good fuck. She knows it. Everyone else knows it. It’s obvious, right? Unfortunately, Yasha’s early return from a Jester-encouraged spa day at the Pillow Trove interrupts Beau’s plans to take care of things herself. And Beau’s own attraction to Yasha doesn’t make things any better. To fight the frustration, Beau decides to show Yasha the joy of a gym session. After all, what better way is there to get rid of a tangle of frustration than working out with a friend? But when Jester joins in and issues a fitness challenge, Beau’s sexual frustration may prove to be more than she can handle. It’s fluff with a side of sexual tension!
I did not expect my fic that was entirely just Beau being horny on main to be as popular as it was, but boy am I glad that was the case! Writing Beau’s thirst for Jester and Yasha and getting to write all three of them being powerful in their own unique ways was a ton of fun that I will definitely be returning to in the future!
4) Queen of Swords
Description: Beau and Molly are injured and trapped together. Certainly it’s the perfect time to do a reading for Beau.
Another of my early Campaign 2 fics that was very popular. Here, the fun was in trying to capture the mix of irritation and sly care that Beau and Molly had for each other. I think it came over pretty well!
3) A Knock at the Door
Description: A knock at the door can be the start of many things: a conversation, a seduction, an untimely interruption. Fjord’s conversation with Mollymauk takes him to a place he didn’t expect and Jester tries to help out with predictably mixed results.
I got the image of Molly teasingly seducing Fjord and that moved on to other *ahem* images and so this was born. Apparently, the trick to fun sex is just to throw a little Jester in there to mix things up!
2) Practice
Description: Keyleth had always felt like she was missing something. Sex was so important to everyone else, but she could not understand the appeal. Masturbating? Sure, that felt good. But the physical act of being with another person? Wanting to be with another person, in that way? She’d tried it and found it lacking. So one night while on watch with her best friend Percy, Keyleth asks him about his own sexual experiences. As they both open up about their pasts and their insecurities, Keyleth realizes that the best solution to their mutual problems may be each other. Who better to practice with than a friend? What follows is a series of rendezvous across Tal'dorei, as Keyleth and Percy explore different sexual acts, their own comfort and desires, and navigate the sometimes choppy waters of intimacy. A story about sex, (a)sexuality, and all the complexity and anxiety in between.
My precious, precious baby. The fic I nurtured and struggled with through the entire year. And here it is: finished. I wanted to write a story about realistic sex (not just amazing smut sex, although it is also that) and navigating sex with a friend. I am genuinely proud of this fic and what it accomplished.
1) We Are the Shadows in the Mirror
Description: The fight against Trent was going well. And then it wasn’t. And then it hadn’t happened at all. When Beau finds herself back home about to marry Caleb, she knows something has gone wrong. Very wrong. She is trapped in the body of a dutiful daughter, one that has never known a day of combat, and her friends are trapped in their own nightmare versions of their lives. Traveling across the Dwendalian Empire, Beau must face down a Caleb still loyal to Trent, a Fjord who became a ruthless bandit, and a Jester who was found by something much more sinister than the Traveler. Can she free them in time to save the life of one of their own and escape this world? Or are they doomed to die as shadows in the mirror? A story of battles, self-doubt, and the strength of friendship.
Co-written with @ginnyvos, @bisexualpiratequeen, and @the-last-noel06, this was my contribution to the Critical Role Round Robin Challenge over the summer and it produced what is definitely one of the best things I have ever written. I don’t write action–I wrote action. I don’t write adventure–I wrote adventure. This is, I think, a pacey story that really keeps the surprises coming and is also completely true to the characters. It was such a surprise to me!
