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[berryless]

"Would you mind terribly if I'm…a bit rusty in that regard?"

"Rusty? You sound like it's been quite some time since you slept with another."

"Some years, yes. I don't remember the exact number."

"Oh dear. Was your last lay so terrible at their duties you swore the entire thing off?"

"Quite the opposite, actually." Tav laughed softly, and he could see her eyes warming in reminiscence for just a moment as she looked aside. It passed quickly, though, and soon she looked back at him, with that familiar intense stare.

Sometimes Astarion would find it quite uncomfortable, but now he relished the feeling, knowing she was looking at him and not at the person in her memory through him. He knew the difference, would've been harder not to when he played the role of substitute lover enough to make him lose count.

"We weren't meant to be, however. It's in the past." Tav smiled again and lifted her hand to cup his cheek. "Just letting you know I have a sizeable threshold of expectations. Though given your height, it shouldn't cause you much trouble."

She joked, this much was clear, but it still didn't sit well with him for some reason.

"Oh? Is this how it's going to be?" Astarion purred, crouching over her, caging Tav between his arms. "You'll find I perform perfectly well under pressure."

Something shifted in her, Astarion could feel that. In the way her gaze softened, in the little smile her lips curved, in the soft brush of her thumb against his skin.

"You don't have to perform," Tav said, pulling him closer. "Anything. At all. I know I won't."

She kissed him, slow and mellow, enjoying the taste of closeness the same way she savored wine. Her rough lips moistened by saliva looked delectable, and Astarion didn't stop himself from letting his fang puncture a hole to lick the blood. It was as sweet as usual. As many things about her were. A few months prior Astarion would call them cloyingly saccharine. And yet he found himself enjoying them now. Her gentle touch, her warm embrace, her unceasing attention, gaze trained on his face, piercing and rapt. Just as he bit open her lip to taste blood, Tav was prying him open with her eyes alone, devouring whatever was leaking through the cracks of his perfectly trained expressions. She smiled each time that happened, a content smile of a cat who caught a rat in its clutches and was now licking the creature's fur instead of eating it in one gulp.

He was supposed to be the predator between the two of them.

And yet with that smile Astarion was forgetting to care about adhering to the strict roles between vampire and his prey.

#fanfiction #fanfic #baldur's gate 3 #bg3 #astarion #bg3 astarion #bg3 tav #astarion x tav #astarion x reader #fluff #romance #a precursor of more salacious thing to write #which I obviously don't write #(yet) (maybe) #heard them talking in my head and I just had to scribble that down

[berryless]

A small attempt at drawing in the manga style hehe

#Aaaaaaah I just love his expressions #The way this is 100% canon #You simply cannot convince me otherwise

[berryless]

November 6th teaser

#a date with death

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A date with Death CG textposts~

#a date with death #THE tumblr meme casper post #genuinely the funniest thing I've seen today #kicking my feet and giggling #so babygirl coded

[berryless]

Thinking about that annoying tism black and white thinking in the context of fan works, where only 100% right behavior of character is considered 'In Character' in my head, and everything that falls below than perfect original canon line is OOC, even if it's 99.99%.

Especially when it comes to my own writing—I'm much more forgiving towards seeing slight discrepancies in writing of others.

But the second there's a thought in my head—hmm, this seems kinda OOC… I'm spiraling into yet another deep canon dive to look at the original and compare it with way I portray them, and that completely paralyzes my creative process until I either find confirmation to my vision, or find myself wrong—and that starts another kind of spiral of continuous editing and reediting until it feels 'right'.

Even if the whole point of fanfiction is to take a character, put them in a scene, and see how they'll behave there. And those scenes are usually ones we didn't see in canon, or weren't as detailed in description there, so there's not much to copy from the original story.

Like, that's the whole point! That fanfiction is a derivative work that is not obligated to follow the established source material to the T!

And yet, and yet…

God, I miss being twenty and writing singularly for my own enjoyment without care for the world…

#rant post #art rant #fanfiction rant

[berryless]

Anyways, new addition to my ongoing OK, Mr Grim Stalker is up on Ao3. I will leave the full text there and only post the preview here, because I cannot go through all that suffering for second time…

OK, Mr Grim Stalker

Grim Reaper | Casper x Custom Female Main Character (Humor, PG || 1.9k words || chatting, banter, dialogues with 0 exposition)

Summary:

First day of chatting goes horribly wrong. Casper's being cyberbullied (he deserves it, though).

Read full work on Archive of Our Own.

Grim Reaper

Foolish Mortal, You Shall Evade Me No More!

I Have Had Enough Of You Fiddling Around In Your Room And Ignoring Me.

I Have Come To Reap Your Soul.

That Is Far More Important.

Hand It Over Willingly, For I Am Not Here To Play Games.

Answer Me At Once!

…Hello?

I See You Wish To Ignore My Demands! Foolish.

Incredibly Foolish.

Please Respond.

…

Does It Not Work After All?

Well, This Is Quite Embarrassing…

Testing. Testing 123. Hello? Testing.

Fuck Me.

Soul#8129

What, straight to fucking right off the bat?

Sheesh

Take a girl to dinner first

Grim Reaper

!!!

I Was Suggesting No Such Thing!

It Was An Expression Of Frustration, Not A Request!

Soul#8129

Taking how many messages you've sent…

Someone's DEFINITELY frustrated lol

Grim Reaper

And Yet You Have Chosen To Ignore All Of Them, And Focus On The Most Insignificant One.

It Will Do You Good To Go Back And Reread Them.

Soul#8129

TL;DR

Grim Reaper

Whatever Does This Mean?

Soul#8129

Too long, didn't read

Grim Reaper

…

Oh…

Soul#8129

Come on. Now I feel bad

Even though YOU'RE the one who hacked into my laptop

Grim Reaper

That Would Be Because I Have An Important Matter To Discuss With You.

Soul#8129

I'm broke

Grim Reaper

???

Soul#8129

I'm broke, I have no money to pay you to turn my laptop back to normal

Or for whatever information you got from it 

Grim Reaper

That Is Not Why I Am Here. 

Soul#8129

???

What else could a virus want from me?

Grim Reaper

Virus? I Am No Such Thing.

Have You Not Yet Realized Who I Am? 

I Am The Grim Reaper Who Came To Collect Your Soul. 

Soul#8129

Yea, I can see your nickname, I'm not blind (yet)

Are you grim reapers so up to date you moved the soul reaping process to the digital space?

Grim Reaper

Usually It Is Not Required To Do So. 

However, You Are A Special Case. 

So, I Have Created This Application With The Sole Purpose To Message You. 

Soul#8129

All for me? Why, thank you, I'm flattered

Grim Reaper

You Should Be. 

I Had To Spend A Significant Amount Of Time On It.

Now, Let's Return To The Main Question. 

Your Soul. 

Will You Hand It Over?

Soul#8129

And what am I supposed to do with my soul to get it to you?

Is there a CashFoe for souls or something? SoulPay? Mortmo? 

Can I pay in small installments? I'm not ready to lose all of my soul at once

Grim Reaper

There Is No Such Thing As Small Installments Of Soul. 

It Is Either Complete Or Shattered. 

And Believe Me, You Do Not Want To Have Your Soul Shattered. 

Soul#8129

Why?

Grim Reaper

It Will Cease To Exist. 

What I Am Offering To You Is A Peaceful Departure To The Afterlife. 

Soul#8129

… 

This is getting kinda creepy ngl 

Grim Reaper

Your Instincts Serve You Right. 

For You Mortals Death Is Something To Be Feared. 

However, You Need Not Be Afraid. 

If You Are To Agree To Hand Over Your Soul Peacefully, I Shall Ensure Your Departure Would Be Quick And Painless. 

Soul#8129

Somehow that doesn't sound very reassuring 

I wonder why 

Grim Reaper

I Speak No Lies. 

Soul#8129

Not exactly the point I was focused on 

Grim Reaper

Then What Is The Issue? 

Soul#8129

The fact you put special effort into creating this app, hack into my computer and is now actively pushing me to agree to die and hand my soul over to you 

Wait. 

How did you know what I was doing before I got into this chat? 

When you almost went bald from trying to format your fanfic into a tumblr post, and then the saving failed OTL I was more than halfway done with it too………

#fanfiction #fanfic #ao3 fanfic #a date with death #a date with death x reader #a date with death x mc #a date with death casper #adwd casper #casper x reader #casper x mc #a date with death grim #adwd grim #grim reaper x reader #grim reaper x mc #humor #banter #chatting

[berryless]

When you almost went bald from trying to format your fanfic into a tumblr post, and then the saving failed OTL I was more than halfway done with it too………

[berryless]

OK, Mr Grim Stalker

Grim Reaper | Casper x Custom Female Main Character (PWP, NC-17 || 5k words || smut, fluff, dirty talk, consensual voyeurism, masturbation on camera)

Summary:

Casper was caught in 4K during call, and MC lives for it. They banter lots, tease each other, Casper's barking and begging.

!Warning!

Not Enterely Canon Compliant, Canon Divergence, Slight Canon Adjustments, Alternative Timeline, Canon Typical Angst and Mentions of Death/dying/etc (but nothing bad really happens, I promise) (at least not in this fic) (this is pure smut with just a sprinkle of warnings)

Read this work on Archive of Our Own.

"You're blushing, Casper," Caha smiled, her head tilted as she watched him sputtering on the other side of the screen. Somehow the certainty of being seen made his usually perfectly coordinated limbs stiff and awkward. 

"…What are you wearing?" he managed in a strangled voice, habitually avoiding answering unwelcome statements.

"Oh, this?" Caha tugged on one of the straps of her top, and her breasts jiggled right in front of camera. Casper wanted to look away, but couldn't, eyes glued to the display. "Laundry day clothes. Be thankful I bothered to put on anything at all."

Did it mean she could've potentially been sitting there naked..? He tried really hard not to think about it, but failed miserably. A stupid thing, really. Not that he never reaped someone during the intercourse, or never saw other bodies naked—both things happened to him plenty of times. The problem was, those things happened with strangers he had no feelings for whatsoever, and so was able to stay perfectly calm and composed the entire time.

And Caha, as much as it pained Casper to admit it, wasn't such a stranger. She was a nuisance and a sole failure in his outstanding career, and, fuck, why was she leaning closer..?

Casper straightened up, squeezing himself into the back of his armchair, watching Caha's chest practically pressing against the camera as she fished for something. He never knew she had a mole there, right in between. Perfect spot for kissing.

"Lyusha says hiiii," Caha hugged the cat to her stomach and waved Lyusha's paw.

"Hi, Lyusha," Casper answered weakly, casually waving back. 

No, he wasn't at all disappointed with the creature's appearance. Or the fact that she was now babied to pieces, taking all of Caha's attention.

In fact he could stand not being watched for a minute or two.

Losing a glove in process, his right hand slid under the desk, brushing against the throbbing tent of his pants. Hells. It was infuriating how little Caha needed to rile him up.

Casper watched her scratching Lyusha's belly, breasts jiggling with each movement of her arms.

Caha had plenty of moles on her face, but he never knew… Right in between, huh..?

He propped his chin, leaning on his left against the table while his right hand was quietly pulling down the zipper. Unlike certain someone, he was dressed properly for the call. And now regretted it a little: sweatpants would've been easier to get around. Still, he managed. Without the constraints of tight clothes, his erection freely stretched the boxers.

Casper took a quick look at the screen, but Caha was still preoccupied with petting purring Lyusha sprawled on her lap with the most annoying baby voice accompaniment possible. 'Oh, who's the cutest sweetest little thing in the whole wide world' and 'yes, my darling baby angel, you guessed right, it's you' were spilling from her like they cost nothing, flowing right into his ears together with the endless kissy noises, like she was saying that to him.

She wasn't, though, and Casper couldn't help but look at Caha, voicelessly begging her to spare at least a crumb of that attention and affection to him.

She didn't notice, of course.

She never did.

Casper hid the lower part of his face under his left hand and took a first tentative stroke, still through clothes, lips tightly pursed to not let out the slightest sound, eyes on the screen, on that fucking mole, thinking only about how it would feel on his lips. Caha was so warm that one time he touched her. So soft. Even through his gloves, Casper felt that.

His lips would probably melt off on spot if he were to kiss her. Run his palms along her curves. Squeeze her chest, fingers sinking into soft flesh. Bite her collarbone, then neck, taking in the pulse of her life beating against his lips.

Now he could only bite on his glove and swallow down the swears as he slowly stroked himself. Quiet. He needed to keep quiet.

Caha paused, then smiled, eyes sparkling. 

"I was expecting a pretty please, but that's better."

She slipped out of straps of her top and then yanked it down, breasts bouncing free of fabric. Casper watched her, breath caught in his throat, mouth suddenly dry. Caha scooped them into her palms, fondling herself carelessly, fingers digging into flesh. That mole was there again, deep brown in jarring contrast against Caha's pale skin. 

"Well, how about it?" she asked, looking at him with a smile. "How do you like your bones, Grimmy? Are they up to your distinguished taste?" 

He tugged his left glove away with his teeth and ruffled his hair, shaking his head that felt two sizes too big all of the sudden. 

"You really want to see me barking at you like a dog, don't you?" Casper sighed helplessly. 

"Maybe. Is that the only thing you want to do with me?" 

 "…Hardly. If anything, I want so much, I can barely think human thoughts." 

Caha let out a satisfied laugh as she plopped back into the pillows. 

"Not a very good boy, are you now, Grimmy?" she teased, finger circling around her nipple. "With many, many naughty thoughts in that fluffy white head of yours, tsk, tsk, tsk."

"And who's at fault for that?" He couldn't help but glare at her, grating his teeth. 

"Yours, of course," Caha scoffed in a matter of factly manner, her chin raised high. "You could've been fucking me like an animal all you wanted, no thoughts, head empty, brain smooth and unwrinkled, but instead you chose this. Now suffer in the bed you've made. Or rather, in a chair. Touch yourself with those beautiful cold hands of yours, thinking about how mine would've felt. Warm. And soft. Very, very soft. No calluses, no rough spots. Wrapping around all of your length, one atop another, stroking, caressing and rubbing you all over."

"Hah… hngh…" 

Casper choked on his suddenly thickened spit. With Caha voice in his ears, saying stuff like that as she played with her tits, watching him masturbating, his body tingled all over, nipples tender and taut, hips thrusting into his hand by themselves. 

"Please… Talk more, Sunshine… Please… I want…I want to hear more…" 

She sighed in a way that made him tremble, then her right hand slid down again.

"It's not just my hands that are warm, you know? It should be much hotter inside my mouth. I'm not sure if I'd swallow you whole, you're kinda…a handful, in more ways than one, but the tip? I would've circled it with my tongue and taken it in. You know those ridges at the roof of the mouth? Right behind the front teeth? Bet they'd feel good against the skin, won't they?"

"…Yes, yes they would."

Hot sweet mouth. That sharp tongue of hers gliding all over him. She would definitely be all teethy about it, just to make him quiver in anticipation of a bite.

Hands on him, warm touch of them. Handling him with that tender carelessness of hers.  Soft, then firm, then soft again. Light scratches. 

Her face, her eyes, looking at him from the bottom up with that mischievous glint to remind him that she may be on her knees now, but it's him who's getting played. Defenseless and at her mercy. Getting the desired relief only with her permission.

"You're so pretty, Casper. So, so pretty." Caha whispered, words round and sticky inside her mouth, r's rolling from her tongue right into his head like pebbles, disturbing his already unstable mind. 

"Can't…take your eyes away…can you?" he scoffed weakly, trying to shake the picture away before he'd start begging out loud. 

"Can't."

"Knew…it. Ha. Good…you're finally admitting it. Told you…I'm charming…and irresistible…for your kind. Hah. Hngh. Fuck…"

He bit on his lip, squirming in his chair, close, so close… 

"I'm trying, believe me. You know…there is another hot and wet place beside my mouth I can put you in? One that'll take you whole. It's practically dripping now, I'll have to squeeze my shorts after this call, really, what are you doing with me… Better then, what you're not doing with me. When you could've. Honestly. You. Ugh."

He knew what she was talking about. Of course he knew. 

"Caha…" 

"It's hard to do it dry handed, isn't it? You're so sensitive, Casper. Bet it's grating to you without any lube, huh? I could've helped with that. Maybe. Depends on your attitude."

"Please…" 

"No. More."

"Woof..?" 

"Still no. More."

"Sunshine…please…"

"Please what? Use words."

"Please…help me. Please… I…I want…" 

"Yes?" 

"I want…this. You. I want…you…so much, I'm going…crazy. You're fucking up… my life…and my head…and my job…and I still… I… I… Caha… Sunshine… Please."

"…You're telling all this, but still aren't coming. Even though I have perfectly toasty dripping pussy to put you in. Swallow you whole and squeeze the life out of you. Or death. Or soul. Or something. I'm sitting here, wet heaving, frothing at my privates, begging to be stuffed. Begging, Casper. Contracting on nothing but air. Achingly empty inside. All those nice wet folds and pulsing muscles left unused when they could've been wrapped around your stupid pretty pink cock. Hot and tight, so, so, sooooo tight. Milking every last drop out of you. Wouldn't that be nice?"

That was the only thing in his head as Caha spoke, words and images blending together, all the fantasies about her he played on repeat swarming in at once, flickering under his eyelids in sporadic fragmented flashes: Caha with her legs spread wide, demanding to fill her; her again, palm pressed against his chest as she straddled him with that annoying cute irresistible smirk on her lips, her wet folds sliding against his cock, covering him in her juices; her again, hands on his shoulders, palm cradling the back of his neck, nails digging into his skin as he thrust inside her; her again, pushing his head between her thighs, fingers raking through his hair before grabbing a fistful of it right at the roots, the tug just the right amount of painful to feel pleasure; her again, eyes closed, teething on her lower lip, all her soft flesh and curves trembling while he mindlessly beat into her like an animal in heat; her again, riding his face, trembling and moaning, his fingers digging into her thighs to keep her in place; her again, his teeth on her neck, biting and licking and biting again, leaving possessive marks in his wake, mine, mine, mine. Her body, her soul, her heart, everything, all of her, only his.

Nothing but her on his mind. 

Just like she wanted. 

Casper came and choked, gasping on air, dizzy and breathless, lost between fantasies and reality, not sure which was what. 

Caha looked at him from the screen, head tilted, pouting, her cheeks bulged. 

"Congratulations. Good for you. I still think I would've done a better job. Made much less of a mess. And you could've cuddled with me afterwards, and I would've kept you warm. Humph."

She turned her face away, but soon looked back at him from the corner of her eye, then turned even further, chin raised high, harrumphing again. 

How could someone be simultaneously so stinking cute and so fuckable? It was still a mystery to him. 

Casper leaned onto the back of his chair and closed his eyes for a moment, evening his breathing and heartbeat. 

Caha was so incredibly wrong about that one thing: she was the one who made all this mess in the first place. Unceremoniously squeezing into his life, into his head, carelessly breaking and destroying all the rules he upheld, all the things he thought were right, all the plans he had for the future, and triumphantly taking the main place among the rubble of his disorderly mind, crowning herself as she took all the space inside it, leaving no room for other thoughts. 

And a week later he was supposed to claim his rightful rewards for winning the bet and ferry her soul to the afterlife, never see her again, and turn back to the life he had before he ever knew her. 

Yeah. 

She couldn't have made a bigger mess if she tried. 

#fanfiction #fanfic #ao3 fanfic #a date with death #a date with death x reader #a date with death casper #adwd casper #a date with death grim #adwd grim #casper x reader #grim reaper x reader #casper x mc #grim reaper x mc #smut #fluff #full text #I feel kinda guilty for using x reader tags because it's technically x mc and in Casper's third person POV #Sorry if you came here expecting second person y/n #I still hope you'll like it though #I can say I for sure enjoyed writing it

[berryless]

Such an apt visual metaphor of Astarion's past. Painful and on point. The tired face of a puppetmaster, distantly overlooking his own wooden body, brightly polished and shining, enthrallingly beautiful, but absolutely empty inside.

The scissors leaving deep marks on his flesh as they cut his strings, but giving that sweet, sweet freedom. After two hundred years of pure shit, Astarion can finally breathe, and yet it breaks him down, his perfectly smiling mask cracking open to reveal his tear-stained face.

Wounded and a little broken. But free. At last.

Just some emotional Astarion doodle fanart

[berryless]

"What, want me to ruffle your feathers?" Tav asked with a smirk when she caught him staring, as if she didn't ruffle enough of his feathers prior to this moment—figuratively speaking, most unfortunately.

The owlbear's cub sprawled on its stomach beside her, head on her lap as it was cooing something. Given how eagerly it butted into her hand, rather obvious what it was after.

He took a step back, arms raised as he refused, "I'll abstain for tonight. Afraid the competition's too fierce for me to win this fight without any losses. Tomorrow, though…"

He let some hope into his voice, tone laced thick with promise.

Astarion looked at Tav, waiting for her answer, and she nodded to him with a smile on her lips.

"Wonderful. I'll be awaiting then. Most eagerly."

So easy.

Too easy.

He should've known better, but perhaps he was momentarily blinded that she'd finally given up keeping her distance.

Tav played with his hair for a good part of the evening, and Astarion tolerated it—the experience was quite enjoyable, if he was to be honest, but those weren't headpats that he was after. Finally the time came to take the heavy weapons against her, those that he was most proficient at using. Those that hardly ever betrayed him. And he needed Tav to not betray him either. To protect him, when hardly anyone in the camp was terribly happy about having a vampire in their midst. If Cazador… When Cazador… Even though Astarion didn't need to breathe anymore, the air staled in lungs when he thought about this. He needed Tav—and everyone else she have eating out of the palm of her adorable little hand—to stay on his side when that happens. Because as convenient as it may've been, out of many advantages the worm gave him, making his master forget about his existence wasn't one of them.

Her fingers raked his hair and scratched his scalp, sending him into shivers as Astarion couldn't help but lower his guard a notch. He wasn't an inexperienced youngling, still wet behind his ears. He wouldn't miss the change in her touch when it was most familiar to him. It would be rather convenient for Tav to hold his neck or slide her fingers under the lacing of his shirt, so Astarion expected that. Ears too were a good starting point… Lips, perhaps, if she was feeling adventurous for a sharp touch of his fangs…

He turned to the side, forehead pressed against Tav's stomach to let her get to the back of his head. Then turned again, face buried in her lap.

As tedious the pointless waiting went, this kind of foreplay was not without its pleasures. If she were to continue fondling the rest of him in same manner, Astarion wouldn't mind much. If anything, the thought was getting him rather excited, albeit weary in a similar way any kind of sex did. But it was familiar kind of wear he was most used to, so Astarion was slipping into it with ease like one would into old boots they've long been donning. Perhaps the heels were stooped a bit from years of use, and the laces were frayed and brittle, but those were the boots he'd worn for as long as he could remember. He didn't have a spare, if there even existed a spare the likes of him could afford.

Finally Tav's hand stopped, resting on his neck as she barely moved her big finger against the edge of his hairline.

He knew it was coming, and yet a part of him was strangely disappointed.

Well, no point dwelling on it.

Finally it was his turn to…

"Think I'm spent for the evening. My hand's cramping. Want to lie down for a little while longer, or you'd prefer to rest on something more comfortable than my lap?"

Her question came most unexpectedly. At first Astarion thought he heard it wrong. But when he raised his head to check Tav's face, there was nothing special on it, like she was asking something mundane, barely worth of notice. And it was a rather mundane thing to ask. If you weren't expecting anything else to follow.

She wasn't.

It stunned him when Astarion realized that.

Thankfully it lasted barely a moment, and then his instincts kicked in.

"Why? I find your lap a rather enjoyable place to rest my head on."

'It would be even better if you were to let me put it between your legs, but I suppose I wouldn't get much rest then,' was supposed to follow, but somehow it got stuck in his throat. He couldn't even say why at first.

Because she wasn't flirting. Because it wasn't foreplay. Because she just offered to ruffle his feathers in a most simple, primitive, childish way possible, and never planned to stretch the invitation to something more salacious and titillating.

Ruffled his feathers she did.

With much too fervor.

Astarion hardly remembered the way he traveled back into his tent and what he said in the process. Surely it was something appropriate for the occasion, he could trust the habits beaten into his skull by years of use.

No wonder she agreed so easily. He must've been blind not to notice.

He laid down, curled into a ball, sulking—for what, Astarion couldn't tell.

Perhaps it irked him that his plans fell through, and the cooked duck flew away from his mouth when he was so close to biting into it. What else could've been the issue otherwise?

But most strangely, a tightness in his stomach loosened as soon as he was left alone. He breathed with ease, warm ticklish touch of Tav's fingers lingering on his skin.

Safe.

From what..?

He didn't know.

#fanfiction #fanfic #baldur's gate 3 #bg3 #astarion #bg3 astarion #bg3 tav #astarion x tav #astarion x reader #fluff #character study #astarion being astarion #my timeline is all over the place #this is supposed to preceed previous headpats drabble #because I think it would take some time for Astarion to ease into the idea of having platonic skinship #I will later boot it onto my ao3 #so if you want to read things in PROPER timeline #you can find my texts there

[berryless]

"Alright," Tav said after a pause. "As long as only people you sink your teeth in are either future corpses or willing participants, I've no problem with it."

"That's the most surprising," Astarion couldn't stop his brows from rising higher. "I expected you to be…more prudent about this. Not that I'm complaining. Obviously."

"So far we've met but a couple of goblins who deserved whatever was coming their way, so don't be too hopeful about your diet." Her playful reprimand was softened by a chuckle, "But I don't expect to plow our way to creche without meeting at least a handful of bandits or other unsavory fellows. And if we're so forced to confront them in battle, there's little difference between them dying under your dagger or under your teeth. The least they can do is to stave your bout of hunger, no?"

"A-ah, ever a rational thinker. If my heart wasn't dead, it might've just skipped a beat."

Astarion leaned to her with a smile on his lips, catching and gauging her reaction. Tav stayed still, arms crossed as she allowed him closer, though she appeared unmoved by such approach. A pity.

"Well then, I don't suppose you would include yourself to the list of the willing participants again this night, would you?" he still asked, a little hopeful. Though not without fussing, Tav once agreed to lend him her blood, and he remembered the taste with fondness.

She rolled her eyes in thought, clearly contemplating the proposition.

"Tomorrow," she decided finally. "I'll ask Shadowheart to prepare a spell to deal with my bloodloss."

Astarion sighed, disappointed, but not surprised—having fun and a full stomach every day was outside of his expectations anyway.

"Fine. I'll stay put for tonight, but be aware, I would spend my every waking moment consumed with thirst and much anticipation," Astarion whispered, close enough for his words to tickle her ear. His smile was practiced, with just enough promise to make her breath stagnate.

As much as Tav loved keeping her calm, the fact that he was affecting her didn't slip past him. His lips quivered, bending into a satisfied grin that Astarion quickly erased.

He knew enough to see how long this little game would take. He didn't mind it, though. As long as he was winning.

#fanfiction #fanfic #baldur's gate 3 #bg3 #astarion #bg3 astarion #bg3 tav #astarion x tav #banter #a little homage to THAT pride and prejudice strip by kate beaton #forever my favorite #always in my heart #'I will sit here consumed with lust for the rest of the evening' #just *chefs kiss* #if you don't know what I'm talking about #check harkavagrant.com/index.php?id=176

[berryless]

As much as Astarion likes to pretend he's better than everyone, the truth is—when the performance ends, and the curtains draw to a close, he stays on the stage alone and forgotten, unworthy of attention when he isn't a spectacle. That's why his little theater is open for everyone around the clock. Every act, every movement, every phrase, although deftly improvised, is part of the show.

Everything to prevent the crowd from discovering the truth.

Everything to fool himself into forgetting said truth himself.

That outside of the spotlight, away from the little stage of his, when he looks in someone's eyes, Astarion doesn't see himself reflected in them. They look at him, but also past him, through him, like he's nothing but an empty space, a person-shaped hole in the fabric of the world that someone forgot to mend.

And because this happens oh so every often this thought is no longer a fear of his, not something he can doubt, but a simple fact.

They don't see him. They don't know him.

They don't care to.

Admittedly, this makes it easier to stomach luring them back to Cazador. Because of course a performance of century would require a fee. Nothing in this world is free. Certainly not his services.

And he is but a humble baitman, a shining lantern attracting moths to leap into the flames of eternal damnation.

A tool.

And as a tool he does what he's told to do unless he wants to end up discarded and broken like others disobedient useless tools were.

But then Tav sees him. And it's frightening.

Because suddenly after the show is over, after the curtains are drawn, after everything falls back to silence, and he returns to being in nothingness, he isn't truly alone on this stage anymore.

She's here, sitting quietly, looking at him in a contemplation, thinking who knows what—Astarion certainly doesn't. And her presence alone is forcing him to put back his stage costume and perform off clock, asking in jest if she happened to lost herself in his eyes, because it certainly wouldn't be the first for this to happen, he does have pretty eyes (or so he's been told enough to regurgitate the sentiment appropriately).

Tav laughs, "As a matter of fact, you do. But…" Her voice trails off, and that uncomfortable stare returns. She looks at him, lost in thoughts as she gathers her words, and a wave of goosebumps runs up Astarions arms when it comes to him she actually sees him.

Wants to see him.

Through him—in a different, completely foreign way, not skipping past his existence, but uncovering it and studying its insides. His insides.

The notion makes him nauseous.

His fingers start to tremble, and Astarion hides them in his fists.

He never knew that being perceived might be so frightening.

He's far more comfortable with everything being the usual way, for people withdrawing when the performance ends, for them seeing past him, but not him, because if they judge his mask, his persona, his act—that's a critique of his presentation. His work, if you will. His craft.

Not of Astarion himself.

And as it shockingly turns out, he might not like receiving judgment on something that he, an actor, an author, a man behind the stage is.

"You have far more than just those beautiful eyes of yours, aren't you?"

He laughs on cue, desperate to turn this exchange into one he has with his audience, "My, what gave me away? My luscious locks, perhaps? Or would that be my lustful lips? I received rave reviews on my use of them. Would you like to try for yourself?"

Tav smiles. She looks at him openly, without blushing, without twitching, neither sultry nor loathing, accepting his words like an act that they are.

Astarion can barely keep his flirtatious mask without it cracking.

"As tempting as this offer is, afraid I've to restrain myself," she sighs, the tone of her voice aligning to his. She's also performing her part, and he knows that with certainty. "My compact size does not allow me thread deep waters without caution."

And your waters, Astarion, run very deep indeed.

She doesn't say this out loud, but he can infer the meaning from other places.

"Oh, come on, I'm hardly deeper than a puddle," he quips back. "You'll be perfectly fine sloshing through. As long as you don't mind being messy."

"Will I?"

He's still unable to see his reflection, but the feeling of being seen doesn't go away. She looks at him, through him, but not past him, right into his skull, right into his soul, and a part of him wants to curl himself in a ball to hide from this deep penetrating stare of hers.

Thankfully, Tav turns away before he's forced to do that. Or gouge out her wise all-knowing eyes, completely ill-fit for someone oh-so-young.

"Goodnight, Astarion."

He doesn't ask for a goodnight sip this time, just says something fitting without thinking much about it.

The feeling of her gaze lingers, it crawls under his skin, making all his hairs stand on end.

He doesn't like it.

And yet the shudder runs through him from just a fleeting picture of those eyes prying him open and reading through him with same acute attention that's reserved exclusively for her books. A frightened one, yes. But simultaneously full of excitement.

He does not like it.

Not one bit.

Not at all.

#fanfiction #fanfic #baldur's gate 3 #bg3 #astarion #bg3 astarion #bg3 tav #astarion x tav #astarion x reader #drabble #character study

[berryless]

Tav's touch is light and measured. Her short nimble fingers rake up his hair into an absolute mess of a birdnest in which he would never appear in public willingly, but the process of getting it is so infuriatingly pleasant, Astarion is stuck between tolerating the possibility of looking like Scratch struck by a lightning spell, and prying himself off Tav's lap.

Begrudgingly, he sacrifices the temporary perfection of his looks.

Tav hums above his head, face stuck in a spellbook, but her fingers never stop.

It's still bizarre to him how such act of intimacy can exist in and by itself, without being either prelude to nor an afterthought of sex. Unnerving even.

A part of him waits for the other shoe to drop, for Tav's touch to become more sensual, for her to beckon him to return the favor in only way he knows.

The shoe stays put, and that's the part Astarion finds most uncomfortable.

Thankfully, it's not like Tav never asks for anything in return. She frequently complains about how her legs weren't made for walking such great distances with rather unfriendly terrain, or whines about her headaches from overusing magic and losing too much blood (which is entirely his fault, Astarion has to admit). This 'give and take' approach to closeness puts him at ease, because he's used to treat intimacy as currency. It is an entirely safe act to exchange one form of closeness to another.

The problem with it is that the exchange is never even. The minutes spent, the effort wasted, they never seem to line up perfectly, leaving Astarion with a surplus and a debt to repay. Because he should repay it. Right? That's how it worked in all the time he remembers.

Every time he doesn't return exactly the amount he's taken, Astarion feels imaginary interest ticking up. It grows at a slow and steady pace, threatening one day to become bigger than he's ever able to return. Than he's ever willing? Will he be willing..?

Unable to do anything about it, Astarion tries to ignore it, as if when he doesn't think about it, the interest stops rising.

He never asked for this surplus, did he? And if Tav's so foolishly generous, who is he to decline? It certainly wouldn't be the first time for him to use someone's magnanimity and trust against them. He's long been numb to guilt himself about it.

And yet he keeps the tally and counts his debts, and waits, and waits, and waits until Tav will ask to round it up in a single payment. A final one, because it will be final when she'll ask for it. He'll cut his losses afterwards and will be careful to not end up indebted to her again.

Meanwhile, Tav's fingers scratch him just right, and Astarion practically melts from pleasure, his shamefully content face hidden in Tav's lap as shiver runs down his spine. Tav laughs when she notices it and playfully tugs on his ear.

The shoe stays put.

The debt grows.

Astarion ignores its existence.

#fanfiction #fanfic #baldur's gate 3 #astarion #astarion x reader #astarion x tav #bg3 astarion #bg3 tav #bg3 #fluff #drabble

[berryless]

And if I do? (Malleus's POV)

When she covers his lips, struggling for a breath of fresh air yet again, Malleus grasps at her wrist as he kisses her palm. Each one of her fingers. The back of her hand when he turns it around. Her pulse. Then he rolls together with her, pressing her down, and puts his lips to her neck.

Every part of her that he didn't dare to touch, every part that her loose clothes kept well hidden. That shallow dip between her collarbones, the thin short scar beneath it. His lips press against her fast-beating heart, and for a moment Malleus revels in the knowledge that he's the one who made this sound so frantic. That underneath this skin, and flesh, and bones, in her very core Freya treasures a part of him in the same way he does when it comes to her.

For the first time that anxious throbbing at the back of his throat, that terrified whisper of constant loneliness in his ears dies down, swallowed by the certainty that the person so dear to him holds him in their heart.

Malleus Draconia/Original Female Character Fanfiction (PWP, NC-17 || 17k words || Birthday Boy SSR AU)

#fanfiction #fanfic #ao3 fanfic #ao3 writer #ao3fic #twst #twisted wonderland #twst malleus #malleus draconia #malleus x y/n #malleus draconia x reader #malleus x reader #malleus smut #smut #*sobbing* it took me almost a year #people give birth faster than I wrote this fanfic #it was all worth it in the end though

[berryless]

He didn't remember hugs.

Now, passionate embraces in the heat of the night—those Astarion had plenty of. Touches and squeezes during the flirty banter, limbs intertwined under the table, hands casually teasing the private parts in a promise to do more once they get to the room, or on the way there.

Any and all physical contact that people made during sex, Astarion had everything.

Hugs were different.

He saw them sometimes, from the corner of his eye. Rarely, since he wasn't frequenting the establishments that promoted this sort of pure interactions amongst its visitors. Sometimes he scoffed and laughed at fools cuddling together amidst the bodies rolling in the drunken swill. Jeered at them for being much too softhearted for being regulars of such sordid places.

Envied—though he was hardly comfortable putting the idea into thoughts.

It didn't stop him from wondering how that felt all the same.

Tav's hot hands cradled his back, lightly patting and stroking it. Her sigh ruffled his hair, tickling his skin, as Astarion froze, not moving, nothing in his head.

Tav chuckled and squeezed him closer, lightly rocking from side to side.

Astarion hesitated, but ultimately gave in, hugging her back.

It felt…nice.

Warm.

Not completely comfortable, since he was standing on his knees to bring himself to the same height, but Astarion strangely found this mild inconvenience reassuring, because otherwise it would've been much too perfect for him to bear the feeling. Having at least a teaspoon of nuisance in this honeypot made it easier to swallow. He still had the difficulty swallowing it, as they lumped together into a swollen knot. His hands shook—indiscernibly so, but Astarion was aware of the most minuscule tremors in his own body.

A part of him wanted to turn this into something more sensual, sexual, simple. Safe and known. If not that, than at least into a joke, to diffuse the suddenly heavy atmosphere.

He tried to, but couldn't speak properly through a lump in his throat.

He hugged Tav closer, breathing in her scent, and warmth, and life.

"Nice, isn't it?" she chuckled, patting his back.

Her cheek pressed against his ear, soft and squishy, perfectly biteable. Yet he ignored the itch in his teeth, and hugged her closer still, a sudden shudder running through his body—why, he couldn't tell.

"Good," Astarion agreed, his voice muffled and quiet, barely audible.

He had to wonder no more.

He didn't remember hugs.

He wanted to remember this.

#fanfiction #fanfic #baldur's gate 3 #astarion #astarion x reader #astarion x tav #bg3 astarion #bg3 tav #fluff #drabble #my tav is short & mighty #don't freak out about height difference #that halfling model looked the squishiest of them all

[berryless]

i am annihilated by grace of @berryless who wrote this durgetash inspired piece

[berryless]

And if I do?

This feels like a kiss scene. This should be a kiss scene. Their noses are practically touching. And yet she can't do anything, but stare at him, starry-eyed.

Damn you, Malleus Draconia, for making her fall even deeper each time. Damn you for doing all this to mess up her heart, and yet not kissing her even once! Is she really the only one here who thinks about that..?

Malleus Draconia/Original Female Character Fanfiction (PWP, NC-17 || 11k words || Birthday Boy SSR AU)

Additional Tags: Porn with Feelings, Unresolved Sexual Tension, Resolved Sexual Tension, POV Third Person, Alternative Body Parts, Monsterfucking (Light)… [the rest of the tags are under the cut]

First Kiss, First Time, Some Other Firsts Too, They kissed once and it all went downhill from there, Theoretically knowledgeable virgins getting togetherIs their sex too good for the first time? Maybe it's because they read books about it, Friends to Lovers, #But they're both down bad for each other, But they're not sure if their crush reciprocates the feelings, (Almost) Public Sex, Does it still counts if no public showed up?, Yuu but it's an Original Character, And they're also an adult, Because I prefer centuries wide age gaps where all partners have their brains fully developed, Post Diasomnia Chapter Timeline, Second Year Timeline, Alternative Timeline, Malleus Overblotting Implied, Who knows what canon will bring us so I kept this vague af, Fat Main Character, Plus-Size Main Character, She got 'em love handles and I love that for her, Body Worship (kinda?), Tongue Fucking, Have I mentioned Alternative Body Parts?, Monstrous tongue, Monstrous penis, I love them Bad Dragons thank you very much, Knotting, Breeding (kinda?) (no actual getting pregnant involved), Does it counts as Double Penetration if his tongue is fucking her mouth?, Accidental Angst in the end, Sorry I can't write porn without sprinkling some glass into it

#twisted wonderland #twst #twst malleus #malleus draconia #malleus draconia x reader #malleus x reader #malleus x y/n #malleus x yuu #malleyuu #malleus smut #ao3 fanfic #fanfiction #fanfic #pwp #nc 17