#If your wondering what the others are- search the “trolls mean girls au” tag in my account

[punkpoemprose]

December 14th- A Convenient Arrangement Part 6

Universe: Canonverse Arranged Marriage AU Rating:T Length: 6083 Words A/N: Dear reader, there is only one bed. And a lot of feelings before there is only one bed. More feelings about there being only one bed in the following chapter which will probably come soon?

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[Part 1] [Part 2] [Part 3] [Part 4] [Part 5]

Kristoff watched cautiously as Anna sat on a small stone near Pabbie’s home and listened to the old troll tell her the same information that had been shared with him earlier in the day. It had been confusing to him at first, particularly because he scarcely remembered anything about his early years with the trolls and the time of his life he spent without them. Anna had been even younger than he had been when their paths had first crossed, and she was having difficulty remembering it to the point that Kristoff wondered whether it had really happened at all.

The trolls didn’t lie, but they had also been alive for several human lifespans, and sometimes they forgot details or transposed dates, and it certainly wasn’t something that Kristoff could ever hold against them. They knew more about the history of the land than he could ever imagine learning, not to mention all the information they knew about magic and nature that he was certain no human could ever hope to understand with such mastery.

What if I just dragged her here to be confused and scared instead of comforted and informed?

He almost wanted to take her to the side and apologize when Pabbie looked at her with a serious gaze, like he wasn’t quite sure what had gone wrong. He wanted to tell her that he had only meant to comfort her the way he’d been comforted earlier in the day, and that he wanted her to feel safe with him and his family. He wanted to ask what she needed and give it to her.

I want to take care of her.

He realized in that moment that there was something he could do to that end, signaling for one of his uncles to come to his side.

“Can you bring a message to the city for me?” he asked as Anna continued, not too far off, to talk in quiet but confused tones with Pabbie.

“Of course. I just hope the Queen will remember us better than her sister.”

He sighed. He wanted to chide the troll for the tone of confusion. He wanted to tell him to cut Anna some slack for not remembering, because he wasn’t even sure it had been her at all. At least he knew that the Queen must know of the treaties between the crown and the trolls, or that at least one magic wielder might understand another.

The trolls usually tried not to leave their valley, particularly because they didn’t need to do so, but they were capable of it. He’d noticed them sometimes out of the corner of his eye, hiding in parts of the city at night when they were curious enough to explore. He knew that some of the people knew of them well enough to leave them alone, while others knew enough of them to be frightened by them, which was of course little to nothing as anyone who knew more than what to call them knew they were harmless.

“Please just tell the Queen that… well you’re my family and that her sister is safe and well. Tell her we got caught up talking and that we’ll be staying the night in the mountains and returning in the morning.”

The troll smiled, “Oh, staying the night is she? Do you want me to send some of your aunts and sisters over to make up that little cabin of yours?”

The wink the troll gave him was exaggerated, and Kristoff couldn’t help but feel grateful that Anna was too busy speaking with Pabbie to notice. He wasn’t meaning to be crass, but Kristoff couldn’t help but give him an annoyed look as she shook his head and sighed.

“No. Just let the Queen know please. I’d rather not be beheaded first thing in the morning when the palace guards get sent out in search of the Princess and think I’ve kidnapped her.”

The troll laughed, and Kristoff couldn’t tell if he understood that he was being serious or not. He hadn’t really thought much about Anna leaving the castle with him that morning. He’d always come and gone places as he liked in his life. It had never struck him to think for a moment about how his wife wasn’t allowed to do the same until they’d left the castle gates and she’d been so rapt with attention and focused on every detail of the town and the wood beyond the castle gates.

He’d shown her the places she’d never known existed before. There were natural hot springs, overlooks, waterfalls, and groves of apple trees she’d never seen. He’d stopped and slowed to let her see them as they rode along, and while they’d made good time on their trip into the mountains, he’d never wanted to avoid a stop that might interest her.

Is that what love feels like?

He shook off the thought and watched as the troll, still laughing at him and shaking his head, set off toward the edge of the clearing. Once there he started to quickly roll down the path that Kristoff knew was the quickest way to get to the capitol city from the mountains. He took comfort in the fact that as quick as the trolls could move the trip was not likely to take long, and that soon enough Anna’s sister would know that she was safe.

Hopefully she’ll take the word of a troll.

He turned his attention back to Anna and his grandfather. It seemed, as he walked back to their space, that there had not been any major breakthroughs on getting her to remember the moment that their paths crossed as children. It was odd to him that she wouldn’t remember anything that had happened to her. Though, when he thought about it a bit harder, he felt like he could remember the little red haired girl, the one that Pabbie thought was Anna, being asleep through the whole interaction.

“Pabbie?” he interrupted, wondering if perhaps the revelation might prove useful, or at least allow Anna some respite.

He could see that she was tired. It had been a long day, and having the same information thrown at him earlier in the day with a better memory of the events had been exhausting enough. He could tell she was frustrated and trying her best not to show it. It was written all over her posture, the way her fists were balled up on her knees, and the way her head was hung a little low so that she wasn’t quite making eye contact.

The old troll looked at him, but Kristoff’s focus was much more on Anna when she looked up at him. He saw that there was a shine to her eye, that she was frustrated to the point of tears.

You shouldn’t have brought her here.

He stepped closer and kneeled down at her side, offering her his hand. He felt relieved when she took it, and then warm when she used it to beckon him closer, leaning on him a bit when he complied to the physical request. They’d broken more unspoken cautionary boundaries today than they had on the wedding night.

Even their wedding kiss didn’t feel as intimate as her seeking his touch and support felt. He could almost fool himself into believing that what she felt for him was growing from partner in a bad situation to friend, to maybe something more like an actual spouse. He wanted to be that for her.

“I was just thinking… the girl… Anna, if it was her. She was asleep the whole time. How could she remember if her eyes weren’t open.”

The old troll looked thoughtful for a moment, and then Kristoff watched as he started piecing together the memories of the night that had been the subject of Kristoff’s thoughts for the entire evening. It was the day that the trolls had adopted him as their own, the day he’d followed a trail of ice to their valley and watched what he’d been told was the royal family meet with his grandfather.

He supposed that it had to have been them, unless of course ice powers and looking like the royal family were much more common traits than he had been lead to believe. It was what he rationalized bringing her to the trolls with. Somehow their whole situation felt a little bit better if the trolls were right and the early events of her life were tied to his.

Fate might be real, or it might be a load of crap, but either way it’s something to believe in and that feels good.

“You might be onto something Kristoff,” the old troll said, and then after another moment of silence he added, “Of course… Anna, do you remember your sister having powers when you were young?”

She looked thoughtful for a moment as Kristoff turned his head to look at her where she was leaned against his side. Her brow scrunched and she squeezed his fingers where they were interlaced with hers. She looked off into the distance, and he watched her space out as she thought about her younger years.

He was worried that they’d hit another roadblock when she shook her head.

“No, I was surprised as anyone when she froze the fountain… I’m sorry, but I don’t remember anything but just the two of us playing.”

“I did a good job then,” the old troll said with a smile.

He made a broad gesture then with his hands, sweeping them through the air like something hung in it that only he could see. He swirled his hands in it, gathering something that Kristoff realized was becoming visible, glowing and glittering along his fingertips.

With an abrupt shift, that made them both jump, the old troll leaned forward and settled his hand on Anna’s forehead, the light settling into her skin as he eyes fluttered shut.

***

She was small and she was building a snowman. His name was olaf, and he was very cold, but he loved warm hugs. She hugged him, her little arms unable to span his snow body, but the love she felt for him was bigger than she was. Elsa giggled from behind the snowman, carefree, in a way she hadn’t seen her in years.

Then Elsa was with her again, this time making a sled of ice for them to slip down an icy hill on. Anna hadn’t recalled it not being a wooden sled before, but it made sense. No wooden sled wooshed the way they did on the ice. No wooden sled felt so cool under her.

She saw them again, Elsa making little snow dolls for her to play with, even though it was bedtime. Anna made them smooch because she always liked it when her toys were in a story about true love and marriage. It made her sad, for a moment, to remember that.

Then, she felt a knot grow in her stomach as she recalled a night long since forgotten. Elsa was building her little snow hills, and she was jumping quickly from one to another. She was jumping higher and higher and higher, but then there wasn’t another column below her, and she started to fall. She saw Elsa try to help, saw the flash of her sister’s ice come towards her, and then everything after was dark and cold.

She tried to push through it, to remember more, but not more memories would come, because they had never been formed.

I was asleep.

She felt a warmth at her side, and she let herself take a deep breath before opening her eyes. The old troll had been right of course. The night she couldn’t remember had likely been the very same night Kristoff came to the valley, following the ice from her wound and from Elsa’s anxious inability to control her powers.

When she opened her eyes Kristoff was staring down at her. She’d been pulled into his lap, and she thought, for a moment, about closing her eyes and staying there for a moment.

Her head hurt. There was a sort of congested soreness behind her eyes that radiated out to her temples as more memories, little ones about snowball fights and flurries and ice skating filtered back into her thoughts. Kristoff put his hand against her forehead, as if he were checking her temperature, and Anna noticed some of the pain fall away.

It was no magic that helped her feel better of course, just the warmth of his hand and the gentleness of the gesture that made her feel like all of this truly had been fate.

She looked up at him, and then above him, to the clear and cloudless night that had come on as she talked to Pabbie. She wondered if she looked hard enough, whether she could see herself and Kristoff written in the stars like any of the other constellations.

She’d had a tutor once who’d told her that constellations were just stars, a million miles away, that weren’t rigid structures so much that they were interpolated shapes, lines that humans drew in the ocean of stars above to tell themselves a story. She stared up at them, past Kristoff’s concerned features, and picked a handful that she thought looked a bit like interlocking circles, give or take a few stars.

That’s us.

Two circles crossing over each other, linked by fate. And by a wedding. And maybe by more.

The stars twinkled as she gazed upon them, and she thought that maybe they too were a sign. She hoped that they were telling her that everything would be alright.

Kristoff’s thumb moved a bit of hair away from her eyes, swiping it away easily as he held her in his lap, against him, against his arm. The almost brain freeze-like pain faded away the longer his hand rested against her forehead, and she let her eyes drift back closed.

***

Kristoff had been worried that she had been injured. He trusted Pabbie of course, but when she’d slumped a bit at his side and had stayed weak and slumped for a while after her memories had been returned, he had been afraid that something had gone wrong.

She’d come out of the shock of it a few short minutes later though, and he’d held her in his lap for a long while before she’d sat up on her own. They’d talked to Pabbie a bit more after, about how Kristoff had only found his family because of her family’s accident. It felt strange to think that they’d met before, her and the trolls, and that Kristoff had seen her that night.

She hadn’t remembered it because she’d been asleep, and she hadn’t remembered anything before that because the memories had been taken from her. That hurt to think about, that there were all these wonderful memories of her sister being her authentic self that were gone to her for so long.

The old troll had explained the need to remove the memories, the fact that with her being so young, Elsa’s magic might have done worse than just changed her hair if the memory of it had been left there. She knew that of course, having been struck again with her sister’s cold fairly recently and almost dying because of it. It had only been her own urge to protect Elsa that had saved her life.

She looked over to Kristoff, as they broke into the clearing where his small home sat. He had a thoughtful look on his face that she could scarcely read in the dim light provided by the moon and stars above them. He’d wrapped his arm around her for the walk back, steadying her on the path as they walked through shadows and she thought that maybe he was also trying to warm her.

The summer night was not particularly cold per say, but still she shivered.

She wondered what he would do when she told him about being struck with her sister’s ice for a second time. She wasn’t sure if he would understand, and she didn’t want his pity. She didn’t think she needed to warn him about it either. It was just something she thought he might like to know.

I just want someone to know.

Plenty of people knew, really. The royal council, Elsa, some of the staff, but no one had talked with her about it. No one asked how it had felt, how she’d felt her life ending and knew that she was powerless to stop anything but the end for her sister as well. It had been a miracle that they’d both survived, but there had been no time to breathe after.

“I sent someone to tell your sister you’d be staying,” he said quietly, “Hopefully she wasn’t too worried about how long we’ve been gone.”

Anna flushed. She’d forgotten about making sure Elsa knew they were alright. She still wasn’t sure if her sister had even gotten the note that she’d left for her.

In hindsight she could have probably handled the whole situation better, but she had just wanted to leave the castle, to be alone with her new husband for a while. Elsa, she knew, was still uncomfortable and fearful about the whole situation. Anna was as well, but she’d spent at least a little time with Kristoff and knew that he was the sort of person who would close off around others. If she really wanted to get to know him, it wasn’t something that could be done with the trailing guards Elsa would have insisted on.

She could already imagine the speech she was going to get from her sister when she arrived home. The air around her felt colder even thinking about it.

“Anna?”

He’d said something while she was thinking, but she hadn’t heard him. She still couldn’t completely see his face due to the dimness of the light around them, but she thought that maybe he was smiling. He probably realized she had spaced out, and she appreciated that he didn’t seem to get annoyed or upset with her when she did so.

If he did it would be a long and frustrating marriage.

She hoped that it would, of course, be a long one.

“I’m sorry, I was thinking about something.”

He nodded and extended a hand to her, offering her assistance to enter the cabin. She took the offered hand, but didn’t move, awaiting a repeat of what he’d just said.

“It’s alright, I was just letting you know there’s a tinderbox and a lantern inside. I already brought in the food you packed earlier. I suppose it’s a good thing we brought along extra. I had food here, but you probably wouldn’t have cared for it.”

Her heart started to pound. He made it sound like he was leaving her alone, and that was the last thing she wanted. Their walk back from the valley where the trolls resided had been a quiet one, and she felt like there was so much to say.

I don’t like to be alone.

She couldn’t say that though.

“Aren’t you coming in?”

He shrugged, “I thought I’d stay the night in the stable. You’d be more comfortable without me I’m sure.”

“I would not. You will not,” she said, the response instant and a bit rude, but she couldn’t help it.

She’d spoken the words like a command, but really she didn’t want to put him out. She would never expect him to be put into an uncomfortable position for her, especially not at his own home. More than that, she wanted him to stay with her. They’d been together all day and he hadn’t stepped even a toe out of the line they’d made together on their wedding night. He’d kept her safe, and he’d introduced her to his family. It was more than she’d ever dreamed their trip would be, and he’d, in a roundabout way, given her back her memories. She couldn’t possibly ever thank him enough for that. The least she could do was ensure he spent the night in his own bed.

“Please,” she said, this time a bit more controlled, “Stay.”

His jaw clenched, and she could feel the tension in him, even with the darkness between them she knew he was uncomfortable. She’d put him into a situation where he needed to make a choice, and while she took comfort in the fact that this time she had, in fact, afforded him the option of choice, she still felt a bit bad about acting as if she had any right to demand anything of him.

Her free hand raised up slowly, and before she could talk herself out of it, she cupped his cheek in her palm. The light stubble there scratched at her palm, and she wondered, for a moment, how it might feel to press a kiss there.

She flushed at the thought, grateful for the cover of darkness.

She felt his head tip, ever so slightly, into the touch. Her fingers tingled at the encouragement of the contact, and she let her thumb run across the top of his cheekbone, watching as he closed his eyes.

He sighed. It was a soft and quiet thing. She thought maybe even a relenting sound.

“Okay.”

“Okay?”

“I’ll stay here with you tonight.”

***

He wasn’t sure why he’d agreed to her demand that he stay the night with her. Really it wasn’t a demand per say. It had seemed like one at first, but then she’d pleaded, and touched him so gently, and he couldn’t say no. It had been hard to see her expression in the dark, but he had been able to feel the need heavy in the air between them.

He never really knew what was proper. She was his wife, but she was in many ways, still a stranger. Spending the night in the same space as her didn’t feel right to his conscious.

You did stay the night with her on your wedding night.

He tried to tell himself that it was different, because they’d fallen asleep together by accident, and this was an act with intention. He tried to sooth his concerns with the promise that he’d sleep on the floor and leave the bed to her, but he already had the feeling that she wouldn’t stand for it.

His bed was so small though. He wasn’t sure that they would both fit in it without being so tight together that she would surely be uncomfortable.

She wasn’t uncomfortable touching your cheek. She wasn’t uncomfortable in your lap.

He closed the door of the stable behind him, thinking of it as the point of no return as he walked back towards his home. The light from the lantern in his hand flickered gently in a light breeze that buffeted the dark grass below his feet. In the window of the cabin he saw the outline of Anna, his wife, watching him return.

A nearly identical lamp sat in the windowsill before her, and he watched as it danced in return. Her hair looked even redder than normal, lit only by firelight.

He’d never thought about the type of woman he’d marry, but now that he was wedded to Anna, he couldn’t help but be charmed by her. She had bright eyes and a soft smile. Her personality was pure sunshine, dulled only by moments of deep melancholy that he was unsure if he could yet ask her about. He wanted to know her better, in a variety of ways. But seeing her now, waiting for him in just her underclothes, red hair like flames loose around her shoulders, he thought that he might want to know her in one very specific way.

He hoped that she couldn’t see his flush as he tried to think about anything but how easy it would be to slip her chemise from her shoulders. She’d already rid herself of her corset.

You’ve barely known her three days.

He huffed a sigh and tried to regain control of his thoughts.

She’s three years younger than you. She’s young and beautiful and stuck with you. Don’t think of impossible things.

Instead he forced himself to walk towards the front door with no intentions beyond maybe some conversation if she’d like, and sleeping.

And maybe hugging her goodnight.

He thought that maybe she’d like that.

***

Anna’s heart raced as he returned indoors and quietly and quickly removed his boots, his vest, his socks, and then nothing else. He grabbed a spare quilt from the end of his bed, passing her as he went, but saying nothing as he set it on the floor.

“What are you doing?”

He looked at her, and she noticed that he was flushed. She wasn’t certain of why, but she assumed that it was because she’d caught him in the act of something she wouldn’t approve of. She wouldn’t disapprove of much at the moment, save for him trying to sleep in the stables again, or perhaps on the floor.

“Getting ready for bed.”

The answer was a quiet one, simple. He gave her no more information than she asked for. It made her want to stomp over to him and drag him across the room, to the bed and keep him there all night.

“On the floor?”

He shrugged and she frowned. She could feel a wall building between them, one that hadn’t been there before dinner or before he’d gone out to take care of Sven for the night. It was frustrating, the feeling that they’d finally come to some kind of middle ground, where they were opening up to each other and then to watch it slip out of reach again.

“The bed’s not big enough for the both of us.”

“I think you might be surprised,” she said, glancing between him and the bed, “You’ll find I can take up very little space if the situation requires.”

I spent my whole childhood virtually invisible. You’ll see how small I can be.

“You won’t be comfortable with me there… I’m just trying to do the right thing Anna.”

“Don’t I get a say in what the right thing is?”

She felt something in her stomach tangle into knots. It had been a long day, and now she was fighting with him over something that shouldn’t matter at all. It was just that she wasn’t ready to be alone yet, even if it was just a few feet away. She wanted him closer.

I just want to pretend, just for tonight, that this is a real marriage.

I just want to be wanted.

Hot tears stung at her eyes, not for the first time that day. She did her best to hold them back, but she was feeling conflicted and frustrated and embarrassed. They were strangers, and she wanted him in bed with her. She knew that she should feel worse about it, that she should stop arguing and just go to sleep because he was being a good man to her and she couldn’t demand that he change his views on their union, but she couldn’t tell herself that her feelings weren’t real and she couldn’t pretend anymore that she wasn’t feeling something for him, even three days into their marriage of convenience.

He stared at her, and she thought that she saw a flare of frustration in his eyes. She couldn’t call it anger though. He was still a stranger, but he was her husband and as much as she knew of him, she already understood that he wasn’t going to be angry with her. Not over being upset after a long day, so for the first time in a long time she decided just to let loose.

“Do you know when the last time anyone asked me what I thought was right for me? The last time that anyone asked me to make any decisions about my life that mattered? Because the answer is never. I can see that clearly now that I have all my early memories back, which, you know, my parents consented to having removed and never replaced until now when, thankfully, I ended up married to the one man in the world that had a connection that let me get them back. No one has ever let me decide what was right for me a day in my life Kristoff and fighting back against that nearly got me and my sister killed. It’s the reason why we’re married, because I tried to make a choice, screwed up my one and only shot at it, and people I barely know convinced my sister they knew what was best for me. You don’t have to change your decisions because I want to be free to make mine, but I would appreciate it if I could be included in the conversation over whether something involving me is right or wrong.”

She was shouting, but her throat felt tight. She knew that the heat on her cheeks was from tears, but she didn’t bother to wipe them away.

You sound like a petulant child.

It was true. She did, but she refused to feel bad about it. She’d been unable to throw a good fit since she was very small, and somehow despite probably alienating her husband in the process, it felt good to just let some of the frustration and rage escape. Of course she still knew that her memories being taken from her was a necessity, but it was just another broken straw in the wake of how her parents had raised her, how her family had paved the road to her current hell with nothing but good intentions and no willingness to see past the end of their noses to ask her what she needed.

“I’m…”

She couldn’t say she was sorry.

I’m angry. I’m frustrated. I’m lonely and confused and I need someone.

She heard him approaching her, but she couldn’t look up to meet his eye. She still wasn’t sorry, but she was embarrassed.

He wrapped his arms around her, pulling her against his chest, warm and solid.

She wrapped her arms around him in return, bringing herself into his space as much as possible until she was crying into his shirt and melting into his frame while his hands ran up and down her back. There was a nervousness and uncertainty to the slow and stuttering way he touched her, as if he was afraid of letting his hands move too quickly, or too low.

It was comforting nevertheless, and she let herself breathe through it. When one hand found her hair, she squeezed him a bit tighter, encouraging the touch. No one had ever just touched her hair before. Or at least not since she was very young.

When he carded his fingers through it gently, fingertips smoothing over the ripples her braids had left, she focused on the feeling of the strands being lifted and shifted. It was easier to breathe when she made him her focus. Every time she’d broken down over the last three days, he’d been there to help her through it. While there were people in her life that loved her dearly, she’d never had anyone care so much about how she was feeling minute by minute.

“I’m sorry,” he said gently when her hiccupping breaths had evened out, “You’re right. I should have asked you what you wanted, or at least told you why I didn’t want to share the bed with you. I’m not used to my decisions affecting other people.”

She let herself lean away from his now dampened shirt front, but his arms didn’t lift from her, his hand shifting from her hair back down to the center of her back where the other hand already rested. She didn’t let him go either but loosened her grip slightly so that they could create enough space between them for her to see his face.

He looked worried, but the frustration in his features was gone, replaced again by a softness she was beginning to regard as a look he reserved for her. Maybe it was just wishful thinking, but imagining that he was warming up to her, that their closeness today meant as much to him as it meant to her. Imagining it brought her some comfort.

“I didn’t mean to unload on you,” she said, sniffling a bit as she regained control over her breathing fully and worked to dislodge the feeling of tightness in her throat.

“I think that’s part of what being married is,” he replied, “Listening to the other person when they need to get something off their chest.”

As much as she’d thought about weddings and being married as a kid, she’d never really thought much about what it meant to be married. She liked the idea that he would listen to her when she needed to vent, and she thought that maybe she could do that for him too.

“Do you have anything you need to say to me… I think I’m a good listener.”

As long as I’m not distracted.

He pulled her back into the hug a little tighter and she squeezed him in return.

“Sure, but it’s not urgent.” He replied, his voice low and warm. Calming.

“I think you might have some more to say first? I’m not going to pry, but I didn’t know what was going to happen with my family, and I think that if what just happened to you happened to me, I’d need to talk about it. You don’t have to. I just thought you might want to.”

She nodded. She had five years’ worth of memories to unpack, to disentangle from lies she’d believed for thirteen years. Having someone to listen sounded nice.

“But maybe bed first?” he asked, sounding uncertain.

***

He’d done his best to explain to her why he’d tried to take up residence on the floor without her, leaving her in the bed. He hadn’t wanted to make her uncomfortable in either the physical or mental sense. He hadn’t wanted to assume that being married promised him a spot at her side, even if it was in his bed. He hadn’t wanted her to sleep on the floor either.

Now though he was starting to realize that Anna’s idea of what was right for their relationship was certainly feeling right to him.

He was shirtless, her tears had soaked his shirt and it had been her insistence that he’d removed it. At the time he’d thought that he’d seen her eyes linger on his bare torso, and while it was probably just his overactive imagination, he thought that she’d appeared to be enjoying what she was seeing.

I want my wife to be attracted to me. I think I do at least. I know I’m attracted to her.

She was sleeping, her head rested on his bare chest like a pillow, curled up at his side in a way that he was certain would cause a crick in her neck in the morning. He didn’t want to move an inch, his arm was draped over her, a thin quilt and her chemise all that separated them.

She’d told him so much about her life, what it was like to grow up in the castle. Even with her memories returned to her, which she’d described as uncomfortable but not the worst thing she’d ever been through, she couldn’t recall much of what life had been like before the gates had been closed. It made sense to him, as he couldn’t remember much about his life before the trolls took him in, and he’d been eight at the time.

She’d exhausted herself describing the details of what it was like to grow up the way she had, and he hadn’t argued when she’d pulled him to bed with her. He understood that she didn’t want to be alone, and he couldn’t deny how good it felt to hold her in his arms.

He already liked her, and as she nuzzled into his chest and let out a little snore, he realized, with a barely contained chuckle, that he was looking forward to loving her.

He closed his eyes and tried his best to fall asleep as she had, holding her tight to his side.

#kristannaadvent2020 #A Convenient Arrangement #Kristanna #Frozen Fanfiction #arranged marriage au

[nattvingen]

Batfam Fic Recs

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hold my body, hold my breath by redhoodsrobin (manatsuko) Teen-Explicit | Fake relationship, Undercover, Pining, Getting together, Sex

Nobody ever said it would be easy.

to catch a thief by badraph Teen | Character study, Relationship study

He's forced to realize, now, that his mental picture of Jason has been seriously outdated for a while now.

Exit Wounds by Fudgyokra Mature | Rape discussion, Incest discussion, Hurt/comfort, Sex, Getting together, DickKori

After a traumatic run-in with Slade, Dick returns to Wayne Manor to find peace. Instead, he finds Jason Todd.

Between The Bars by Mikimoo Mature | Undercover, POV outsider, Getting together

A number of suspicious deaths at South Haven Penitentiary are being ignored by the authorities, but have attracted the attention of various other parties.

OR:

That one time Dick and Jason accidentally ended up undercover on the same mission and started a riot.

Take the Heat Out of Me by quipquipquip Explicit | Sex, Injury, Some murder, Getting together

Lost Days!Jason trolls Officer Grayson!Dick in Blüdhaven. Dick counter-trolls with the power of love. (It's super effective.)

Swimming Up High (Flying Down Low) by geckoholic Explicit | Sex, Masturbation, Voyeurism, Exhibitionism

Dick's cheeks flush with... he's not sure. There was no alcohol to cloud either of their memory and he remembers every dirty, debauched thing they did last night. And yet there's something indecent about watching this, now, like he's catching Jason in an intimate moment that he wasn't given permission to see.

ghosts and gods by perissologist Teen | Paranormal stuff, Getting together

If Jason is a ghost, then Dick is a supernatural force all his own, one that tears worlds apart in search of better ones.

---

As a side effect of coming back from the dead, Jason is a bona fide paranormal phenomenon. Dick seems to be a little too caught up in mooning after him to notice. Their siblings aren't amused.

(Or, Jason is a supernatural presence after his resurrection, but the poor fool in love with him thinks the freaky feelings are just the butterflies in his stomach.)

Novelty by Salmon_Pink Mature | Sex, Selfcest, Threesome, Costume kink

Two Dicks, no waiting, and it'd be funny if Jason wasn't so turned on he can't think straight.

Under My Sneered Lips by Salmon_Pink Explicit | Sex, Rimming, Felching, Dirty talk

Jason enjoys being Dick's first for all the filthiest things.

Fathers, Be Good by ariadne83, somehowunbroken Teen | Kid fic, Mostly gen

The last person that Dick expects to hear talking when he picks up his phone is Jason, who has been dead for years. Except he isn’t anymore, apparently, and Dick can hear a baby screaming in the background as Jason asks him for help. What is there for Dick to do but drop everything and run to help his long-lost brother?

The Miscommunication of Severance by orphan_account Teen | Divorce, Kid fic, Angst, Happy ending

Dick and Jason were just trying to make it work for the sake of their son.

a holy fool all colored blue by hadrons_collide Teen | Angst, Hurt/comfort, Getting together

After Batman deals with Scarecrow, Nightwing tracks down the Arkham Knight.

His Girl by Neffectual Teen | MtF!Jason, Coming out, Established relationship

Jason Todd took until she was thirty to become Violet, and she sometimes wonders if she'll ever feel quite right.

I Think I Wanna Marry You by dinolaur Teen | Established relationship, Marriage, Coming out

A night out for drinks and a certain Bruno Mars song land Dick and Jason in an interesting predicament. Guess it’s as good a time as any to come out to the family.

It Doesn't Stick by Skalidra Teen | Immortality, Flirting

Jason's fifteen when he dies for the first time. He's eighteen when he comes back to Gotham for vengeance, and dies again. But for some reason that second death doesn't last any more than the first one did, and Jason comes to the realization that something, somewhere, is keeping him alive.

Calendar Boy by empires Mature | No cape AU, Friendly rivalry, Getting together

prompt: Non tragic no cape AU where Jason's a sexy fireman and Dick's a sexy police officer. Bonus +1: policemen's ball. Bonus +2: firemen's calendar. JayDick?

All the Way (Like a Good Boy) by TimmyJaybird Explicit | Sex, JayRoy, Phonesex, Threesome-ish

Jason is drunk. He's drunk and on Dick's couch and suddenly faced with an age-old crush that never exactly died. Except he's with Roy now- but Dick is fairly sure all can be fixed with a quick phone call.

Melt Me Down by Skalidra Explicit | Sex, Marathon sex, Established relationship

Sometimes, Dick gets in moods. Jason's never been able to figure out exactly what the moods stem from, despite their years together, but he always finds himself caught up in the flow of them anyway. But of all the things that Dick could be doing in these moods, this is definitely a good one.

into you by perissologist Not Rated | Dance AU

“You think it’s really Nightwing?” Kyle asks, gaze searching ahead in the herd. “Here, in Gotham?”

“It’s possible, I guess,” Jason says. “He goes everywhere, doesn’t he?”

“C’mon, what’re we waiting for?” Duke is already pushing forward, eyes glittering in excitement. “Man, how crazy would it be if it is him? Dude’s a legend. I’ve been hoping he’d come to Gotham since that one video of him dancing to Tupac on the Eiffel Tower.”

---

The Outlaws are the best underground hip-hop crew in Gotham--until the anonymous international sensation Nightwing crashes onto the scene.

A Hot Mess by Skalidra Teen | College AU, Roommates, Getting together

Jason's roommate at his college, one Dick Grayson, is both a blessing and a curse. Hot as sin but messy as hell, and completely oblivious to both things. Even when he brings up the mess part of it, it doesn't get much better (although Dick is trying). So, they enact a system. Cleaning, in exchange for 'favors.'

I'm Just A Problem That Doesn't Wanna Be Solved by geckoholic Mature | Sex, Sex pollen, Angst, Pining

The agreement, as it stands, is a couple months old. Back around New Years, they had to deliver Bats to Catwoman's doorstep in a last ditch attempt after the chemical route didn't take. It was awkward for everyone and, from what Jason heard, had served to curtail eye contact in the manor to a minimum for a few days. He and Dick had a conversation about it a couple weeks later, and really, this kinda shit happens to them often enough that certain... contingency plans seemed like a good idea.

knocked me off the ground by Windmire Not Rated | No cape AU, KoriDonna, StephCass, Getting together

"It's Jason Todd you'd be working with. You remember Jason, right?"

"He's probably hoping you remember him."

For his best friend's wedding, Dick's more than willing to double as best man and co-wedding planner, even if it means going back to the city he's been avoiding for years on end. Then he meets the other best man and co-wedding planner and falling so hard and so fast was so not part of the plan.

Baby Let's Forget the Morning by MissNaya Explicit | Sex, Incest play, Dirty talk

Jason wonders what Dick thinks of him: is he a brother, a friend, something else entirely? He gets answers, but not in the way he pictured.

deafening perceptions you have of me by thanatopis Teen | Angst, Mutual pining, Getting together

Dick and Jason keep dancing around each other, never quite giving in or giving too much, and Dick is tired.

came down easy spinning threads to the throne by pissvinegarandacrowbar Mature | Sex, Fluff, Prescribed drugs, Established relationship

Red Hood took a bullet for Nightwing. Dick is grateful, he really is. But now he has to deal with a drugged-up Jason Todd.

Run and I will Chase You by Gravity_Sun Teen | First kiss, Pining

Day 1 - First Kiss

Or

The three times it didn't count, and the one time it did.

Cabin Fever by Skalidra Explicit | Sex, Established relationship, Injury

In one random fight, Dick takes a badly angled shot to the knee that puts him out of commission. As his partner, and the one living with him, it's Jason's job to keep Dick off his feet until he heals. Not an easy job, not with Dick's resistance to ever staying still, but he has to do it. At least there's one way that he knows for sure can bleed out some of Dick's extra energy.

Dad!Jason AU by fishfingersandjellybabies Gen-Mature | Baby Damian, Talon!Dick, Hurt/comfort, Getting together

In which Jason is resurrected and found that Talia had a baby with the Batman. To protect Damian from Bruce and Talia's battles, he gives up on his plan of revenge and instead secretly takes the child to Gotham to raise as his own.

But then Dick finds them both, and all bets are off.

My Downfall is Rooted in Your Desperate Need by victoriousscarf Explicit | Sex, Temporary character death, Rape discussion, Angst, Getting together

Dick isn't Orpheus and he can't play a lyre. But that's okay because the analogy falls apart the longer you look at it.

He's just not going to let Jason stay dead a second time.

Pop Psychology by perissologist Mature | Sex, Angst, Injury, Getting together

Stupid broken boys in love.

we will wear our masks again out after dark by IMightwing Explicit | Sex, Batman!Jason, Injury, Hurt/comfort, Getting together

Dick paused and looked straight at Jason. “I want you to be Batman until I’m healed.”

“No,” Jason said. No way in hell, he wanted to say, but the quicker he got this over with, the better.

Written for the Batfam Reverse Big Bang 2017.

Another Perfect Catastrophe by Mikimoo Explicit | Sex, Undercover, Non-consensual drug use, Non-consensual kissing

Dick goes undercover as himself in order to catch a gang of international thieves. Jason reluctantly tags along as his long suffering bodyguard. During the ensuing mayhem they get to know each other again and build a few bridges.

Indulgence by MissNaya Explicit | Sex, Established relationship, De-ageing, Dirty talk, Rape roleplay, Virginity roleplay, Spanking, Rimming, Costume kink, Bondage

A villain's curse turns Dick into a teenager physically. Before they figure out a solution, he and his boyfriend Jason decide to explore a few taboos.

Trophy Wife by Volavi Teen | Fluff, Established relationship

A casual remark from Roy forces Jason to re-evaluate his understanding of his relationship with Dick and his self-identity. Jason can't possibly be the trophy wife, can he? Dick helpfully sets Jason straight. Well, not exactly.

Miniature Bridges by Gravity_Sun Explicit | Sex, Angst, Pining

Day 3: First Time Realizing They’re In Love

Or

It's just sex, until it isn't.

Dick's Dick by MissNaya Explicit | Sex, Sex toys, Self-discovery, Dirty talk, Exhibitionism

Jason gets Dick a gag gift for Christmas. Neither of them expect him to end up liking it so much.

Through the Wire by pissvinegarandacrowbar Explicit | Sex, Tattoos, Body image, Getting together

…to your door, to your door.

When Jason finally works up the courage to get a tattoo he's wanted for years, he attempts to send a picture of it to Roy, who is out of Gotham on an emergency mission. Turns out, Harper and Grayson are awfully close together in his contact list.

Exeunt'verse by elwon Explicit | Sex, Getting together, Coming out

JayDick character studies. A pre-nu52 AU, set after Damian arrived in Gotham, but wherein Bruce never 'died' and therefore Battle of the Cowl didn't happen.

—————

DAMITIM

For a Change by MissNaya Explicit | Sex, Oral sex, Dom/sub, Dirty talk

Tim notices everything, whether he wants to or not. He knows by the clothes Dick wears whether he’s on-again or off-again with Barbara (tight pants and polo shirts mean on-again). He remembers how many bullets Jason has left even when Jason himself forgets. And he knows that Damian has been jerking off to the thought of him for at least several weeks.

Things Have a Way by cadkitten Explicit | Sex, Masturbation, Scent kink, Frottage

Tim gets mugged in his civilian identity. Damian comes to pick up the pieces.

Hoodwing’d by somehowunbroken Mature | JayDick, Fake relationship, Or is it?, Accidental relationship

Dick and Jason seem to think it’s hilarious to make out where Tim and Damian are going to walk in on them. Naturally, Tim and Damian take revenge.

Taste the Green by Salmon_Pink Explicit | Sex, Costume kink, Blowjob

Damian is wearing the original Robin uniform. Tim doesn’t think he can be blamed if he loses his mind a little.

Show Me the Meaning (Of Being Lonely) by TimmyJaybird Explicit | Sex, One-sided TimJay, One-sided DamiDick, JayDick, Heartbreak, Rebound sex, Accidental relationship

It started with a drunken need for comfort- when Tim and Damian were broken at what felt like their worst. But what was reflex, could have been called an accident, turned into the exact thing they both never knew they truly needed.

Involuntary Ties by TimmyJaybird Explicit | Sex, FtM Tim, PiV sex

Tim invites Damian to crash on his couch for the night, and quickly expects their night to go to nothing but bickering. Good thing that Damian is weak and pretty, and Tim doesn’t mind either.

Backwards by shadeblue Mature | Sex, Hate sex, Or is it?

He doesn’t even like Tim. Tim doesn’t even like him.

My True Love Gave To Me by fishfingersandjellybabies General Audiences | Crush, Superbat, Clark is a bro

In which Damian has a crush and has no idea what to do about it.

A Day of Rest by MarbleAide Explicit | Sex, Dom/sub, Bondage, Sex toys

Tim works too hard, but Damian has his own way to make him stop and get his head cleared up.

Give by cadkitten Explicit | Sex, Breathplay, Dom/sub

“Give.” The crack of Damian’s voice was like a whip, right next to Tim’s ear, and God that did things it shouldn’t have.

you don’t have to say i love you (to say i love you) by akaparalian General Audiences | No cape AU, College AU

It is 7:46 AM on Wednesday, and Damian very carefully sits down in his seat (front row, just to the right of the podium), every fibre of his being aware that Drake is sitting two seats away. This is – surely this is statistically significant. From five seats away to two, all at once – and after the coffee, and –

lit!verse: anachronism by heartslogos Teen | Major character death, Resurrection, Damian pls

Damian’s face softens as he reaches out, fingers brushing the unconscious face, “You were my father’s Robin, and for a time, Richard’s, perhaps… you could be my Robin as well.”

Join Me When You’re Free by Skalidra Explicit | Sex, Established relationship, Bondage, Sexual experimentation

Damian and Tim have been together for years, and sometimes, Damian likes to try new things. Usually Tim can see them coming a mile away, or at least know when Damian’s got something on his mind, but this time he’s caught a little off guard. (Which does not at all mean that he’s not interested.)

Plan Awry by DustToDust Teen | Unrequited love, Or is it?

Damian had a plan. For what only became clear after it’d all gone wrong.

#Great fanfic #JayDick #DickJay #DC #Feloss does stuff