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critter-in-skyrim · 5 months

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Forever Friends

Hadvar ran across Helgen’s courtyard, his heart pounding in his ears and his eyes on the skies. The great black dragon flew directly over him, casting an eerie shadow, before it swooped down, capturing an Imperial Soldier in its claws. It tossed the man like he was nothing but a child’s doll, flinging him high into the sky, only for him to crash to the ground with a sickening crunch. Hadvar ran past his body, ignoring the impulse to stop and see if he was alright - he knew he was not.

He could have cried in relief, at finally seeing the entrance to Helgen Keep. Soon, he would at least be out of the direct line of fire of the dragon, then maybe he could think of what to do next. Hadvar’s relief was short-lived, however, as his ex childhood friend Ralof suddenly came stumbling out of the rubble towards him.

“Ralof! You damned traitor! Out of my way!” Hadvar growled, pulling his sword on the blond man.

“I’m escaping Hadvar. You’re not stopping me this time.” Ralof glared at him, though the intensity of the glare was dulled by the pain in his eyes. He held his arm firmly in his other hand, and Hadvar could see blood seeping through his fingers. Hadvar hated the twinge of worry that shot through him at seeing that.

Before Hadvar could say anything in response to Ralof, the ground shook as the Dragon landed near them. It trained its large yellow eyes on Ralof, sparks dancing around its mouth. Hadvar’s eyes widened, and without thinking, he rushed forward, grabbing hold of Ralof, and throwing up his shield.

Hadvar grunted, as he received the brunt of the dragon’s fire blast, the flames licking at his exposed skin. It took everything in him to keep his shield up.

“Hadvar?” Ralof questioned, eyes wide.

“We need to get into the Keep!” Hadvar yelled at Ralof over the dragon’s roar.

As soon as the dragon ceased its torrent of flames, Hadvar grabbed Ralof’s hand and sprinted to the door of the Keep. The two just barely made it inside, before a huge fireball slammed into the door.

Hadvar collapsed to his hands and knees, while Ralof flopped on his back, both of them panting. The room they were in was empty, save for the burned body of a Stormcloak Soldier who had somehow managed to make it inside before dying.

“Looks like we’re the only ones who made it…” Ralof said, after a few moments of them trying to catch their breath.

“That thing was a dragon,” Hadvar said, sounding almost like he was in shock.

Ralof nodded. “No doubt…just like the children’s stories and the legends - the harbingers of the End Times…” he trailed off. He moved to sit up, but let out a cry of pain, once again clasping a hand over his arm.

Hadvar was suddenly at his side. “You’re hurt.”

Ralof glared up at him. “Oh really? I couldn’t tell.”

Hadvar ignored his sarcasm. “Let me see.”

“No,” Ralof said stubbornly, but the pain was clearly getting to him, the way he was gritting his teeth.

Hadvar gave him a weary look, “Fine. Don’t come crying to me if it has to get amputated.”

Ralof shot him a withering glare, but relented, moving his hand. Hadvar moved in closer to look at the wound. The gash was deep, nearly down to Ralof’s bone. The burns around the wound indicated it was likely caused by one of those fireballs that the dragon had caused to rain down from the sky.

“How bad is it?” Ralof asked, grunting when Hadvar moved his arm. “Don’t do that!”

“I have to bandage it, or you’re going to continue losing blood,” Hadvar warned him. He reached down, ripping a strip of fabric from his own uniform, before beginning to wrap the wound. Ralof watched Hadvar’s hands work, noticing the burns on them. He thought back, to outside Helgen Keep, how Hadvar had immediately jumped in to save him from the dragon’s fire breath.

“Why did you save my life?” Ralof asked Hadvar suddenly, using his other arm to prop himself up slightly.

“What?” Hadvar asked.

“Out there. You put yourself between me and the dragon,” Ralof clarified. “I want to know why.”

Hadvar shrugged, looking uncomfortable. “You needed help. I’m a Soldier, I help people. It’s what I do.”

“But I’m a Stormcloak,” Ralof pointed out. Hadvar did not say anything in response to that, glaring down at Ralof’s arm as he finished wrapping it. Ralof continued pushing, though, “Without you, I surely would have died.”

“That can still be arranged,” Hadvar deadpanned. He searched his pockets, but found no healing potions. Outside, he could still hear the dragon burning the village to the ground. He cursed under his breath, pushing himself to his feet. “We better get moving…”

Hadvar hesitated, before holding out his hand for Ralof to take. Ralof likewise hesitated a moment, before taking Hadvar’s hand, getting to his feet. He swayed slightly, light-headed from the loss of blood. Hadvar steadied him, making sure he was stable on his feet.

“There’s a storeroom not far from here,” Hadvar said. “We should be able to find some healing potions there.”

Ralof nodded. “Well then, let’s get moving.”

The two of them slowly and cautiously began making their way through the halls of the Keep. After all, with the dragon attacking, the Keep itself was very unstable - several hallways they passed were completely caved in. On top of that, both of them had enemy soldiers to keep an eye out for, and neither of them was in any condition to be fighting anyone.

The storeroom was blessedly empty when they arrived. Hadvar immediately began rifling around in some barrels, looking for potions. Ralof, on the other hand, took a moment to sit and rest, closing his eyes.

He must have started to drift off, because the next thing he knew, Hadvar was gently shaking him awake. “Ralof.” Ralof groaned slightly, opening his eyes. Hadvar was holding a small potion bottle out to him. “Drink up.”

Ralof took the bottle, downing it. He let out a sigh of immediate relief, as its healing effects washed over him. Ralof was not a fan of magic by any stretch, but he had to admit, potions could be very useful. Plus, there was no better feeling than drinking a healing potion - it was a warm, almost euphoric feeling, as the potion worked its magic. Ralof’s arm would surely need additional attention, but for right now, it was stabilized.

Hadvar, for his part, had begun applying a topical healing salve to the burns on his own arms. Once again, Ralof was reminded of the fact that Hadvar had put himself in harm's way, for him.

“Here’s a question for you,” Ralof said suddenly, drawing Hadvar’s attention. “If I wasn’t me, would you have saved me?”

“If you weren’t you…” Hadvar began, looking confused, before Ralof’s question sunk in. He narrowed his eyes. “What are you implying?”

“You want me to say it?” Ralof asked.

“Better than beating around the bush,” Hadvar grumbled. “You know I hate that.”

“Fine,” Ralof stood, so he could look Hadvar directly in the eye. “I think you saved my life because you miss me.”

“Miss you?” Hadvar scoffed. Ralof continued, though.

“You miss the old days, when we were growing up together in Riverwood,” Ralof stated firmly. “You miss fishing in the river. You miss hanging out with people. You miss the simple life you had.”

“Stop,” Hadvar stated quietly.

“You miss being my friend. You miss pranking my sister with me. You miss sharing a pint of mead with me.”

“Stop,” Hadvar said, voice growing a little firmer.

“You miss the nights we’d share,” Ralof sighed wistfully. “I know I do-”

“I said stop!” Hadvar raised his voice, which was a rarity.

Ralof gazed at Hadvar, a sort of understanding coming over his expression. “You wish you could see me as just another Stormcloak Soldier, but you can’t, can you?”

Hadvar’s green eyes narrowed into a glare. Ralof was correct, of course. He would always be Hadvar’s first love, above all else.

The kiss was sudden, and neither was sure who initiated it. Suddenly, the two men were holding onto each other like they would never let go. The kiss was rough, a mashing together of lips, teeth, and tongues. It was like all those times they would sneak out together as teenagers, yet very different. This kiss was one full of desperation and longing, but also pain and hatred - too many deep and complex emotions to count.

Hadvar paused suddenly, pulling back. “What are we doing? We need to get out of Helgen!”

Ralof raised his hands innocently. “I was just asking some questions.”

“Well, enough of your questions,” Hadvar said, face still flushed from the kiss. “Come on, this way.”

Hadvar lead Ralof through the torture room where it looked like a fight had taken place, with no winners. Next, the two came to a large cavern, swarming with Imperials.

“Orders are to wait until General Tullius arrives,” an Imperial Soldier was informing the others.

None of them seemed too happy about that. “We’re not waiting to be killed by a dragon. We need to pull back!” one shouted

“Just give the General some time,” the first Soldier spoke once more.

“Follow my lead,” Hadvar whispered to Ralof, who made a face at that, but nodded. Hadvar cleared his throat, drawing the attention of the Imperials. He roughly grabbed ahold of Ralof’s good arm, jerking him forward. “This way, prisoner.”

“Imperial dog,” Ralof snarled.

“Hold it,” the Imperial Soldier from before spoke, looking suspicious. “What’s going on here?”

“I’m escorting this prisoner to Solitude for questioning,” Hadvar said, jostling Ralof slightly. “He was a high-ranking Stormcloak Soldier, nearly the right hand man to Ulfric himself. He’ll surely know some valuable information.”

“I’ll never tell you Imperials a goddamn thing!” Ralof snapped.

“Shut up, you,” Hadvar jostled him again.

This back and forth seemed to convince the Imperial Soldier in their way, as he moved to let them pass, glaring at Ralof. “Stormcloak traitor.”

As soon as they were out of earshot, Ralof grinned, lightly punching Hadvar in the shoulder. “Good thinking.”

Hadvar rolled his eyes, but smiled slightly. “You didn’t do too bad yourself.”

Slowly, the tunnels they had been venturing through transformed, becoming more cave-like. Hadvar hoped that was a good sign, that they were getting farther away from the Keep and the dragon attack. They had to defeat a few spiders, but together, they were able to do so with ease. The two had never fought alongside each other before - there had been no opportunity to, when they were kids. Yet when they were fighting the spiders, they fought together naturally, like they had been doing so for years.

“Too bad you chose the Empire’s side in this war,” Ralof remarked. “I’d love to fight alongside you.”

Hadvar scoffed, but Ralof’s sentiments were mirrored. Hadvar wished he and Ralof could fight alongside each other again someday, but he also knew what their reality was: They were fighting together now, only under extraordinary circumstances: A dragon attack. As soon as they were out of the way of danger, they would go their separate ways. And possibly, those separate ways would include fighting each other.

“How’s your arm holding up?” Hadvar asked, changing the subject.

Ralof rolled his arm around a few times, wincing. “Not great. It should last until I get to Gerdur’s, though.”

Hadvar looked at him. “You’re planning on heading to Riverwood?”

“I’ve got to warn my sister and her family about the dragon,” Ralof stressed. “Otherwise I’d be headed straight to Windhelm.”

“Right…”

“And you, I assume you’ll be headed to Solitude?” Ralof asked, failing to hide the bitterness in his voice.

Hadvar hesitated, but nodded. Truthfully, he wished to return to Riverwood as well, to see his uncle and his family, maybe rest up a bit, allow his burns to recover…

“Do me a favor, will you?” Hadvar asked.

“Depends,” Ralof said, raising an eyebrow and smiling.

Hadvar was serious, though. “Tell Uncle Alvor about the dragon too, please.”

Ralof’s face went serious as well, and he nodded. “Of course.”

“And also…” Hadvar hesitated. “Try to keep safe.”

Ralof gazed at him for a moment, before stepping forward. He lifted a hand, caressing Hadvar’s cheek, as he leaned in, kissing him. This kiss, unlike the first one, was soft, tender, chaste, and most definitely initiated by Ralof. When he pulled back, he had that lopsided grin on his face that made Hadvar’s knees weak. “I’ll try,” Ralof finally responded to Hadvar’s request.

Hadvar’s face was flushed a deep red. “Good,” he managed to say, before waving Ralof down the tunnel in front of him.

Ralof laughed slightly at how flustered Hadvar was, continuing down the tunnel. He paused though, holding a hand up to get Hadvar to stop. “There’s a bear just ahead…see her?”

Hadvar looked around Ralof, spotting the bear. “See if we can sneak past her,” he advised.

Ralof nodded, before leading the way. The two of them managed to sneak most of the way past the bear, when Hadvar’s foot suddenly slipped. He made a soft noise, as he nearly fell into the rocky creek bed below…but Ralof’s hand darted out, catching Hadvar’s hand in his. Hadvar managed to regain his footing, letting out a soft sigh of relief. “Thank you,” he whispered.

“No problem,” Ralof whispered back.

They managed to make it the rest of the way past the bear without incident. “That was a close one,” Ralof said in relief.

Hadvar looked on past Ralof, noticing sunlight. “That looks like the way out!”

Ralof turned to see what Hadvar was seeing, a grin spreading across his face. “I knew we’d make it!”

The two managed to squeeze their way out of the narrow tunnel entrance, out into the cool fresh air. It was Hadvar’s turn to surprise Ralof with a kiss - a celebration kiss, that they had made it out of Helgen Keep alive. Besides, Hadvar knew he would not have the opportunity to kiss Ralof for too much longer.

“Wait!” Ralof exclaimed. He grabbed Hadvar’s hand again, tugging him over to a rock and crouching down. At first, Hadvar was confused as to why, but then he saw the large black dragon flying overhead, heading towards the distant mountains. “There he goes. Looks like he’s gone for good this time,” Ralof said in relief.

“Thank the Gods,” Hadvar said. He hesitated, gazing at Ralof for a moment, before looking away. “This place is going to be swarming with Imperials soon…”

Ralof looked back at Hadvar, an almost sad expression on his face. “I suppose you’re right. I should…” He pointed down the dirt path, taking a few steps.

Hadvar swallowed hard. “Go.”

Ralof turned and took off running through the wilderness.

#skyrim #skyrim fanfiction #the elder scrolls #tesblr #hadvar x ralof #ralof of riverwood #hadvar

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throughtrialbyfire · 7 months

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Fic Author Self-Rec!

tagged by the lovely @mareenavee , thank you so much!! <3

tagging @dirty-bosmer @orfeoarte @gilgamish @umbracirrus @totally-not-deacon @v1ctory-or-sovngarde @thequeenofthewinter and YOU!! no pressure to participate, and if you haven't written 5 fics, feel free to just talk about whichever ones you have!!

Rules:

Fic authors self rec! When you get this, reply with your favorite five fics that you've written, then pass on to at least five other writers. Let’s spread the self-love!

i'm going to paste each fics summary, and then go on my tangents!

An Inner Sanctity

Two months after attempting to utilize the Eye of Magnus and gain it's power, Ancano wakes up in an unfamiliar cottage, being cared for by the very person he intended to destroy. Navigating their strange and new dynamic, the Thalmor agent finds he may be offered second chance at life, but whether or not he takes it is another story.

this fic is a huge work of exploration into what indoctrination can do to someone who has never known any different, and how that can affect things as broad as worldviews and as personal as one-on-one dynamics with people. it's also partially catharsis-fic, as giving ancano some of my own mental and physical issues and dialing it up to 10000000000% is a hell of a lot of fun. i love seeing that old man suffer and then earn his rise from the ashes. plus, using athenath in a fic where they cant rely on the other two of the trio - as this is in an AU i call the "athenath solo run" - forces me to think of how they would handle situations on his own. spoiler? not too well.

it's on a hiatus at the moment despite having a pretty long backlog, i just don't have the motivation right now to edit and write more for it, but that definitely will change in the future, because i really love exploring ancano's psyche and how he begins to grow and change.

also the fic title comes from the song "Twilight" by Bôa, while that doesnt have anything to do with the fic, i loved the line "you give me an inner sanctity", sooooo <3

The Mark You Left

Two scientists realize, upon losing contact with Dr. Richtofen, that they are truly alone in the aftermath of their actions.

i don't have 5 fics for TES, so have my singular CoD Zombies fic as well! i've had a special interest in the ultimis timeline of CoD Zombies since uhhhh 2011? maybe? sometimes it lays dormant for months and then all of the sudden i think about it daily, especially the dynamics between Dr. Schuster, Dr. Richtofen, and Dr. Groph. so, i wrote this as a bit of a loveletter to a fandom i no longer am part of, but still have a lot of fondness for. it's a quick read that hits on this concept of ultimate betrayal in the aftermath of literally betraying someone else for that person. two people dealing with that, processing that, and what they'll do in the wake of all of this.

the title for this fic comes from the song "Birds" by BENN, who used to make CoD Zombies-based songs before rewriting/redoing them for his own original work!!

Portraits Under Forgotten Suns

A collection of short one-shot fics done for TESFest 2023. A werewolf in his cage, a Bosmer alchemists' first memory, a Dunmer mage's quiet contemplation, a humble keeper's last look at the place he's called home, a sailor's fate at the wreck of the Brinehammer, and an Altmer bard's fond summer memory.

as it says on the tin! its a series of one-shots i initially published to tumblr, then moved to Ao3 to make them more accessible and have a ready archive of them! i loved working on each of these, getting into different perspectives, and figuring out how to convey the narratives of the characters i worked with. i liked writing up details of my dragonborn trio's pasts, too, and the story for "Forgotten/Devotion" was a hell of a lot of fun, getting to pull the wreck of the brinehammer into a fic!

If by Sun and Moon I Swore

With the Empire's victory in the Skyrim Civil War, Hadvar has been quietly readjusting to regular life. When an old friend turns up at his door, that quiet he'd hoped for comes to a halt.

i love hadvar/ralof with all my wretched pining heart okay. i cannot deny this pair has a vice grip on me! and working with them, two soldiers touched by war on opposite sides who once had something (in this case, used to be (and still are) in love), can be something both so tragic and so healing. pulling this pair back together, giving them some form of comfort, even if it's brief, is such a joy. i have intentions of writing more for this couple in the future, but that's likely going to be a while. still, i'll be sure to let you guys know if i do get around to it!!

this fics title is from "Like The Dawn" by The Oh Hellos! its my quintessential hadvar/ralof song for sure <3

Cycle of the Serpent

Surviving Helgen by the skin of their teeth, three elves find themselves tossed into the middle of ancient legends, a civil war, and a hell of a lot of problems. They may all have different reasons for being in Skyrim, but if they have any hope of reaching their destinations alive, it lies in learning to trust their strange new companions… no matter what. From the ruins of Helgen to the plains of Whiterun, from the seas of Solitude to the grim frost of Winterhold, and everywhere sprawling beyond, the unlikely trio will find that being chosen by Akatosh is more than they've ever bargained for. And with their own histories crawling back, and secrets slowly spilled, the trio may find that there's little they can do to escape the cycles they've made.

this longfic is… a huge undertaking. "An Inner Sanctity" focuses on two very flawed people coming to love one another. "Cycle of the Serpent" focuses on three very flawed, extremely fucked up people learning to trust one another and face whatever fate awaits them together, even when that trust is tested, even when the world is cruel, even when trauma batters and bruises them in the current and then rises up from the briny depths of the past to tug them back down beneath. it's about sustained and sometimes self-fulfilling cycles of hurt, anger, and sometimes vengeance, and it's about love and joy and companionship and friendship that lives within it all.

in short, this longfic is one of my biggest undertakings in a very long time.

i started this as a bit of a joke. the idea of there being more than one LDB was a fun idea, and then i created three elves, and those three elves gave me their family histories and their childhood friendships and their previous travels and how it changed them all prior to helgen and i went… yeah i can't just not write this and go insane about it. these three and their various methods for dealing with situations, their triumphs and defeats, and how they bounce off one another became so organic and real to me that i feel continuously pulled to keep their narrative going. this story forced me to write my first ever combat scenes (posted the snippet of my second ever real combat scene tonight!) and learn how to navigate keeping it within TES lore, while also breaking out of some of the stale writing in skyrim itself. i have plans to rewrite/overhaul entire questlines and characters to give them more life, and i've got dozens of OCs lined up - at least one of whom is hinted at within the first chapter. i have this story and these characters arcs planned out, and they do get particularly grim at points, but i never want this story to go into "there is no hope" territory. there's always hope, it just lies in learning to break your own cycles, even if it feels like it may kill you.

the title of this fic was taken from the song "Pillar of Na" by Saintseneca, i very heavily envision emeros as the first verse, athenath as the second, wyndrelis as the third, with the fourth being all three of them, and the fifth (the "eternal, eternal, eternity round…") being a sort of ensemble of all the places and people they've touched in their lives.

woooooooooooooooo!! that was long-winded. thank you for listening to me ramble on these, and thank you so much again for tagging me, mareena!! i hope everyone is having a lovely wednesday/thursday!! <3333

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naturalbornlosers · 10 months

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“If by Sun and Moon I Swore”

one-shot, M-rated, M/M, hadvar/ralof, post-civil war

Summary: With the Empire's victory in the Skyrim Civil War, Hadvar has been quietly readjusting to regular life. This comes to a halt when he finds himself thrown off-balance by a visit from an old friend.

Preview

Night sunk the sea in hues of indigo and sapphire. The stars marched along in their silver garb. Hadvar entered the manor and shut its door, the sound rattling against the walls, reverberating in the size of the place. One day, he'd sell it and move back home to Riverwood. His stomach panged with the thought of home, and he clenched and unclenched the memory of it's lumbering forests, it's thickly wooded horizons, the constant rush of water outside oaken walls, flowers that cascaded their mingling scents on every loose spring breeze.

He tugged off his cloak, shuddering once its warmth left his shoulders, resting it loosely along the surface of a chair. He stoked the hearth in the kitchen and sat by it for a while, musing to himself internally on the various chores he needed to handle. Dusting the place took forever, an endless task that left him worn, but it needed to be done.

He was about to rise and get to work on a quick meal when the door knocker reverberated through the manor, shaking at every tile in the floor, every piece of glass in the windows. It had only been a small knock, but to Hadvar, it seemed as loud as a shield to a sword.

"Just a moment," he called, moving to the door, his exhaustion from a long day's work evident in his gait. He pulled the door open slowly, peering out into the dark.

In a woolen, grey cloak, stood a figure that made his heart stop.

"Ralof?"

The other cracked a small grin. "Hadvar, it's been too long."

#tesblr #tes v #skyrim #tes v skyrim #tes 5 skyrim #skyrim fanfic #skyrim fic #skyrim fanfiction #hadvar/ralof #hadvar #ralof #ralof of riverwood #tes fic #tes v fic #Statement.txt #my writing #my fics #hadvar x ralof

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i-might-just-be-dying · 1 year

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ANY HADVAR AND RALOF FANS OUT THERE??. I MADE THEM FATHERS. also my dragonborn is there ig. They're not having a good time.

#skyrim #the elder scrolls #tes #hadvar #ralof #hadvar/ralof #hadvar x ralof #ralof x hadvar #idk their ship name but theyre here!#tesblr

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miraakulous-cloud-district · 9 months

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WYGTYA lines

@sheirukitriesfandom tagged me in this most wonderful tag game and I am so happy! Thank you for the tag :D Since WYGTYA is my longest work, I'm going to include lines from this fic of mine that I love so very much <3

A line from your fic that makes you laugh (not really a line, but it made me laugh while I wrote chapter 13)

“What on Nirn is a rock’s weakness?” He asks, casting a calm spell to no avail.

“Scissors?” Ravonna responds, chuckling.

“You think this is a good time for jokes? Master Neloth is going to kill me if he finds out!”

“Scissors, that’s it! Big sword!” she says, the lightbulb of an idea almost visible above her head, making Talvas even more confused.

“I’m sorry, what?”

“Wait here, I know just the thing!” She immediately levitates rapidly to the main tower, doing a backflip before entering.

"But paper beats rock!" Talvas shouts, but to no avail, Ravonna is already in the tower.

A line from your fic that makes you sad (of course it's a Miraak line, from chapter 6)

“I – yes. I just – ” but he has to turn around before the tears start falling down his cheeks. ‘Be a man’s man and don’t cry. Crying is for weaklings, you soft-hearted little boy! Why can’t you be like your brother? You’re a failure!’ his father’s words ring into his ears and he shivers, wanting nothing more than the earth to swallow him. And so he climbs the stairs as fast as he can and heads straight to his chamber. There, he can finally cry for hours.

A line from your fic you're proud of (not yet part of wygtya, but it will be, this is my Ralof/Hadvar ficlet, and I'm so proud of that watetfall metaphor)

“We were drunk and happy and we thought we had our whole life ahead of us.” Ralof begins, trying to be brave himself and just let his thoughts flow into words like a river turning into a waterfall

A line for your fic you think could have been better (There are a lot of things that could have been written better, but I refuse to beat myself too much over it and embrace the fact that I am evolving and I don't want to over analyse my old writing, so this is from chapter 1, I hate this because Hjaldir's story changed a bit over time! When I wrote this, it was all unclear, and so many things have changed since then, I'm hoping my version of him now isn't too far from this brief first description of him)

“Well, Inigo, it’s actually quite a funny story. Hjaldir turned out to be a runaway pirate. He ran away from his crew because he got tired of getting seasick and stealing from innocent people. So, one night, he just ran away. Decided to become a bard and make honest coin. Ended up at my dad’s tavern.”

A line from your fic that makes you want to punch a character (from chapter 12, DAMN IT, LUCIEN, THEY WERE HAVING A MOMENT)

“Am I… interrupting something?” Lucien asks. Right, Lucien. Fenrik’s almost forgotten about him. How could he not, when all he did was sleep his hangover off?

“No!” both Dragonborn respond at the same time, letting go of each others’ hands.

A line from your fic that makes you go 'aww' (from chapter 13, Ravonna trying her best to comfort Miraak is so precious to me, she is trying her best! And this is a big moment for her, to try to be so comforting to one person who once tried to kill her. It's a lot of progress and I feel like she can see their situation from a mature point of view and she can let go of the vengeance.)

“There we go.” she says as she gets a good look of Fenrik’s teary brown eyes. “Now listen to me: no one is upset with you. I’m starting to think that it’s impossible to be. You didn’t ruin anything, okay? The self-sacrificing healer in you got out. And that’s commendable. Now, please don’t cry because I have no idea what to do with someone who is crying.” She says, making him laugh the tears away. “You’re doing great. I mean, if you need to cry, just let it out, I’ll figure something out. Maybe sparkles? Everyone loves sparkles, right?” She makes small sparkles dance around her other hand

A line from your fic that's full of symbolism (from chapter 12, not sure if this classifies as symbolism, but the snake thing is something that I am so proud of)

"I still felt my soul in there, wrapped tightly in the threatening embrace of all those dragons’ souls. I felt it trying to fight it, to escape, like a small animal trying to escape the python snake’s fatal grip."

A line from your fic that contains an Easter egg (WWDITS reference with a medieval and lore-friendly name replacement! From chapter 3)

"His name was Mikael, if I recall correctly.”

“Fucking Mikael!” Ravonna says, full of spite.

A line from your fic that's shocking (from chapter 13, MIRAAK SAID HIS FIRST ON-SCREEN BAD WORD!! Everyone was shocked hahaha)

“Holy shit!” Fenrik says as they get closer to the Silt Strider, making Ravonna’s job to cheer up much easier. She turns to him with wide eyes, and then looks at the rest of the amused fellowship. Even Teldryn was struggling not to smile.

A line from your fic you want to talk about more (from chapter 2, IT'S RUMCURIO, CAN WE PLEASE TALK ABOUT RUMCURIO I'M IN RAREPAIR HELL, MY FIC IS LITERALLY THE ONLY ONE WITH THE RUMARIN/MARCURIO TAG I'M GOING INSANE)

“Just come back alive, or I will kill you.” Marcurio says, his forehead resting against Rumarin’s, still pulling him down. It’s not the most comfortable position for Rumarin, but he won’t have it any other way. It makes him think, really. About all the ways he is going to kiss him as soon as he returns from Solstheim.

Tagging my beloved fellow writer mutuals, only if you want to participate, of course! @bougainvillea-and-saltwater @kiir-do-faal-rahhe @thelavenderelf @mareenavee @dirty-bosmer @blossom-adventures @nerevar-quote-and-star and I'm also tagging @sheirukitriesfandom back to do this challenge!

#tag game #thank you so much for this <3 #wygtya #wygtya stuff #miraak x ldb #oc: ravonna #miraak #lucien flavius #inigo the brave #rumarin 3dnpc #marcurio #rumcurio #teldryn sero #ralof/hadvar

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justheretop0st · 2 years

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Rain

He hated the rain. He hated the sound of it, the smell of it, the feel of it. And though he prayed it never comes, the thunder rolls and mocks him. How unfortunate.

She was one in an era that truly caused change. It was evident at her funeral. There wasn’t enough room to accompany the waves of people who had come to see her one last time. It lasted days, almost a week of respect and reminiscence. There were things that he didn’t even know about her. This was especially telling of the figures in black and red.

The woman he had come to call his wife was a leader by nature. She lead her side to victory in the war. She ended Alduin, granted she had legendary warriors by her side. She solved the vampire crisis, having to split her own soul in order to enter the soul cairn. She became the leader of the companions, even for a brief period becoming the Arch-Mage. She had helped countless people. He was sure there was more, but there are always secrets that are best left to die with her.

The day she died, she looked more. More of everything. More like a leader. More like a wife. More beautiful and terrifying all in the same breath. She laughed and she seemed to glow. The breeze made her hair animate with life. With every ounce of blood in his body, he swore it shone in the sun.

It was quick and he was thankful for that. Perhaps he couldn’t handle it if she suffered. Perhaps it was because he didn’t have to worry about the last words he said to her. Because he swore to tell her daily how much he adored her. It might have been out his comfort zone. But even in his actions he swore to show her nothing but adoration and love. She deserved it and he knew it was likely she was to die at any point.

Being a renowned hero, she had enemies. A single moment of peace, pierced by an arrow laced in poison. Normally it wouldn’t have punctured her armor. But she wore a dress that day. Even into the night when she was being honored with a banquet. Ale, wine, mead and more was being served. How could someone have missed a person with an arrow equipped?

He wished he could have been more vigilant and maybe he would have had it not been for the drink. He wished his last words were more fine than a sloppy serenade. A declaration of known love. On his knees before her and he could feel the air push over his head as the arrow hit its target.

Panic arose in the crowd, they all ran to cover. But he stayed kneeled there, catching her as she fell into his arms. Straight through the heart, and she stared into his eyes. A connection. A final connection. She died with a smile on her face and her hand in his. But he felt to many emotions for him to simply sit there with her. He felt anger. Remorse. Sadness. He wanted revenge.

All he can remember after that is snatching a sword from a guards sheath and searching the building. Room by room, person by person. He was to filled with emotion, but nothing would get past him. He was told that the assassin was eventually found. That this person was taken to jail. But jail was not what the person deserved. For taking such a life, death would be the only repentance.

During her funeral, it rained for those days and nights. He couldn’t bear to leave her side as she lay there. Surrounded by flowers and gifts and mementos. He remained soaked and though there were others with him, he paid their words of condolences no mind. Nothing would make this better.

How he hated the rain.

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stellarsightz · 8 months

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What would you wish for, if you had one chance?

RAHHH it is finally done!! Here's an art collab i did with the lovely and super cool @abstractredd <3

had a lot of fun with this one. hope our fellow hadlof enjoyers like it too :3c

(once again, i am so sorry redd for going crazy on the background like that 😭 )

#YOU. yes you. go to redd's blog and look at their amazing art #they are the best <3 #man i cant believe i spent so much time on a silly airplanes meme #the things a rarepair does to a mf.....terrible #(jk i had a blast drawing this and i cant wait to finish the hadlof fic that me and redd are writing together)#my art #stellar.artz #art collab #skyrim art #skyrim #tesblr #hadvar of riverwood #ralof of riverwood #hadvar x ralof #hadvar/ralof #airplanes meme

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abstractredd · 3 months

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Chapters: 5/5 Fandom: Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, Elder Scrolls Rating: Explicit Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Relationships: Hadvar/Ralof (Elder Scrolls), Aela the Huntress/Frea Characters: Hadvar (Elder Scrolls), Ralof (Elder Scrolls), Aela the Huntress, Frea (Elder Scrolls), Minor Characters Additional Tags: Everyone Is Gay, Fraela was supposed to be background but its definitely in there like. a lot lol, Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, college shenanigans, Enemies to Lovers, Childhood Friends, I Wrote This Instead of Sleeping, Homoeroticism, Gay Panic, this is set in the early 2000s btw, it doesnt super duper matter but, if some stuff seems like outdated or whatever thats why lol, Valentines 2024 Summary:

“Everything was so simple back then,” Ralof said, his voice quiet, eyes staring at the chessboard. “Sometimes I wish I could go back.”

“Me too,” Hadvar said softly, studying the planes of Ralof’s face, piecing it together with his childhood memories of one of the boys on his street.

Ralof nodded to himself, and then, finally, moved. “Checkmate,” he said.

“Huh?” Hadvar looked down at the board. There was no way.

He had lost.

or: the obligatory college au meetcute fic, hadlof edition

#tes #tesblr #tes fanfiction #hadlof #modern au #hadvar x ralof #ralof x hadvar #ralof #hadvar #valentines 2024 #RAHHHH #redd writes

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theskyrimfanatic23 · 11 months

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Everyone shut up, they’re getting married

Also happy pride month :]

#skyrim fanart #hadvar #ralof #ralof of riverwood #hadvar x ralof #ralof x hadvar #hadlof #I’ve seen them tagged as this idk #happy pride 🌈#i know this will flop :(#and i spent three days like #i will cry #its a niche ship #so i get it #i do this to myself

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critter-in-skyrim · 5 months

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War Wounds

After the war, Hadvar and Ralof both came home to Riverwood. It was strange at first - everything felt so normal, so calm and peaceful, yet their war wounds still ached. It took some time for the two to somewhat reconcile. At the moment, their friendship was very fragile, but certainly present.

Hadvar and Ralof were in the middle of fishing down by the river, when Hadvar suddenly said, “Ralof, I have a favor to ask of you.”

Ralof raised an eyebrow, chuckling. “Why so formal?”

“Because this…this is a very big and important favor, alright?” Hadvar sat his fishing pole aside, looking Ralof in the eyes. “I need you to take me seriously for a moment.”

“Fine…” Ralof said suspiciously, setting his own fishing pole aside. “What’s up?”

Hadvar rubbed his hands together, nervously. “During the war, I…was asked to do many things for the Imperial Legion. Many difficult things.”

“We both did a lot of things we regret,” Ralof reassured his friend.

Hadvar hesitated, before nodding slowly. “Yes. This…is definitely one of those things…” Hadvar sighed, holding his head in frustration. “Why is it so hard to say?”

Ralof hesitated, before scooting a little closer to Hadvar, setting a hand on his shoulder. Hadvar looked at him, before giving him a small smile.

“Just…meet me in the old mine tomorrow morning. I promise, I’ll explain everything then,” Hadvar said.

Ralof nodded. “Sure, no problem.”

“Thank you…”

The two finished up their fishing session soon after this conversation, and they went their separate ways. Ralof spent the remainder of his evening helping out his sister at the mill, before collapsing into bed, exhausted.

Normally, Ralof enjoyed sleeping in, but he was eager to see what Hadvar’s big favor truly was. Before the sun even started to rise, Ralof made his way out of his house, heading for Embershard Mine. The moons were full, casting plenty of light for him to see by. When he entered the mine, however, it was quite dark, only lit by a couple torches.

“Hadvar?” Ralof called out, but there was no response. He hesitated, before making his way farther into the mine.

Rounding a corner, Ralof paused, hearing labored, heavy breathing. Concern started to blossom within him. “Hadvar? Are you in here?” he called out again, and again, there was no response. He continued moving forward, a bit more cautiously. He eventually came to a large cavern. It was mostly empty, save for a collapsed figure by the furthest wall. Ralof’s eyes widened and he started to rush forward, thinking it was Hadvar, before he froze.

The figure was most certainly not human. It was also most certainly still alive.

Ralof stared at the werewolf with wide eyes, taking in its appearance. It was huge, probably twice as big as Ralof was, covered in a thick coat of brown fur. Parts of the fur were matted with blood, from what looked like self-inflicted wounds. Most interestingly, thick chains wound their way around the creature, keeping it to that section of the cave.

A thought suddenly found its way inside Ralof’s mind, a thought he couldn’t shake. He hesitated a moment, before softly calling out, “Hadvar?” once more.

The creature stirred. Slowly, bright green eyes flickered open, immediately training on Ralof. It let out a growl that made the hair on the back of Ralof’s neck stand up. Strangely, it didn’t move to get up and go after him, though, instead turning its head away like it was…ashamed.

“It’s…it’s really you, isn’t it…?” Ralof questioned, taking a cautious step forward, then another one. Eventually, he was standing directly over the werewolf. Kneeling down, he reached out, hesitantly touching it.

The werewolf turned its large head, eyes gazing tiredly at Ralof. There was a wildness, a feral look in those eyes, and yet…familiarity. Recognition. It settled its head in Ralof’s lap, sighing heavily.

“Oh, Hadvar…” Ralof mumbled, continuing to gently pet the werewolf’s head. The werewolf he now knew to be his best friend.

The two remained like that for several minutes, until Hadvar suddenly tensed up. His werewolf body began to shake and seize, his expression twisted in pain. He threw back his head, letting loose a howl that slowly transformed into a scream of pain. Ralof watched in horror, as Hadvar’s body curled in on itself, bones twisting and snapping. Clumps of fur fell off of him in fistfulls. Unsure of what to do, Ralof followed his instincts: He reached out, holding onto Hadvar gently as he transformed in his arms.

Eventually, it was over. Ralof was no longer holding onto a werewolf, but onto Hadvar’s naked and sweaty body. He was covered in bloody wounds and was shaking, but aside from that he appeared relatively alright. Ralof hesitated, before reaching out and brushing some of Hadvar’s hair back from his face, so he could see his expression.

Hadvar looked absolutely exhausted, almost worse than he had looked immediately after the war. In spite of that, he managed to speak. “The…the chest over there…it has some clothes and healing potions in it…” he said, pointing weakly to said chest.

Ralof nodded, gently helping Hadvar to lay on the ground once more. “Does it have a key for these chains, too?” Ralof asked, nodding to the chains still bound around Hadvar.

“Mmmhmm,” he nodded weakly.

Ralof quickly went over to the chest, removing the items from within it. The first thing he did when he returned to Hadvar’s side was remove the chains from him - he couldn’t bear to see his friend like that. He draped a fur over him, both to keep him warm and to preserve his dignity. Then he handed him a healing potion for him to drink. After downing it, Hadvar seemed to feel somewhat better, a little bit of color returning to his face.

“Bandages, please,” Hadvar said, pointing to the strips of cloth in Ralof’s hands. Ralof handed them off to Hadvar, who immediately began wrapping the worst of his wounds.

“You seem…used to this…” Ralof said, after warring with himself on whether to speak or not.

Hadvar made a grim face. “It’s hard to ever get used to something like this, but…I suppose I have a routine, yes…”

Ralof swallowed hard. “How…how did this happen…?” he finally asked.

“I told you, I was asked to do many things for the Imperial Legion. Well, one of those things was becoming a werewolf,” Hadvar explained simply. “They had captured a Hagraven, forced her to perform this ritual on a group of us Imperial Officers…I…had to pledge my soul to Hircine.” Hadvar shook his head, shivering. “It was awful.”

“I can’t even imagine…” Ralof whispered. He bit his lip. “So…how do you reverse it?”

“What?”

Ralof waved his hand. “The…the werewolf thing. How do you reverse it, how do you get rid of it?” he asked.

Hadvar shook his head. “You don’t. You don’t just…get rid of a curse.”

“The Dragonborn breaks curses all the time,” Ralof pointed out. “Maybe they could help you out.”

Hadvar shook his head, though. “I’d be too ashamed for them to find out about this…Besides, this is something I need to handle on my own.”

Ralof raised his eyebrows at that. “No,” he said firmly.”

“Hmm?” Hadvar questioned.

“No, I won’t let you ‘handle this on your own’,” Ralof said sarcastically. “I am your best friend. I care about you, a lot. I’m not gonna turn my back on you, just because you’re a werewolf - this morning proved that.”

Hadvar was momentarily struck speechless. He supposed Ralof had a point - Hadvar had gone to Ralof out of desperation, knowing he would need help the morning after his transformation. Ralof had not only stayed when he saw what he was dealing with, but had helped Hadvar through the worst of things. He was a true friend.

Hadvar reached out suddenly, capturing Ralof in an embrace. He seemed surprised, at first, but Ralof soon melted into Hadvar’s arms, hugging him back. “I promise,” Ralof said firmly, “I’ll figure out a way to help you.”

“Thank you,” Hadvar said, feeling hope for the first time in a long time.

#skyrim #the elder scrolls #tesblr #skyrim fanfiction #fanfic #hadvar x ralof #hadvar #ralof of riverwood #werewolves

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