#wayhaven fic

[lykegenia]

Rating: Teen Hurt/Comfort, Fluff, (Mutual) Pining

The morning after rescuing Sanja, Nate wakes mostly healed, and finds that Leah kept her promise to stay with him.

--

The slow, regular beat of another’s heart, its rhythm familiar but foreign, pulls Nate from his healing slumber. He follows the sound of it like a lantern through the dark, and the sight that greets him when his eyes flicker open draws a gasp deep into his lungs.

She stayed. She’s in his bed, cuddled into the cotton pillow next to him with her hand still clasped around his as she sleeps on, in the loose pyjamas she changed into after their return from the Trapper base. Her hair is still a little damp from her shower, the ends of the chestnut locks flared across her back. When she’s awake, it’s always braided neatly or swept up in a bun to keep it out of the way – he didn’t realise it was so long.

The scent of the sewer lingers, of course – it always does – but the foulness of it holds no power over his senses in company with the lime and elderflower of her shampoo, the cool, human smoothness of her skin, or –

Hunger.

Weakened as he still is by the Trappers’ attacks, her blood all but screams at him, and he can’t help but drink in the aroma of it, the spicy sweetness that promises so much power in its satiation. One of his fingers lies across her wrist, where the skin is so soft, so thin, and as he brushes the digit over her pulse she’s so deep asleep that she doesn’t stir an inch. The throb beats in his ears. He could open the artery, do it so delicately she wouldn’t even wake, and steal a taste of her, the salt of skin and her blood beneath his tongue.

He's leaned closer without even realising.

He swallows a groan, horrified, as he pulls back and tears his gaze away from Leah’s defenceless form to the canopied ceiling above his bed, fangs sharp against the inside of his lips. It’s the injuries eroding his restraint, the cost of so much healing and the DMB the medic drugged him with to help him sleep. Instead of the beat of blood, so heavy in the quiet of his room, he tries to hold onto the image of her nestled amongst his bedclothes, the worries and hurts of the day wiped clean from her features, the corners of her lips ever so slightly upturned. A bubble of light expands in his chest as he attunes to the steady, trusting sigh of her breath, the hope that maybe one day he’ll be fortunate enough to listen to it not as an object of sympathy but… as a lover. That perhaps, when he wakes on some future morning, he’ll be able to curl his body warm around her and be embraced in return.

For now, he still needs blood. Yearning wars with the ache of thirst. As carefully as he can, he untangles his fingers and rises from the bed. A faint pain still sits deep in his muscles, though it’s a relief that most of his injuries have healed, and after stretching it out as best he can, he turns and retrieves the eiderdown throw draped across the foot of the bed. Pulling it up to Leah’s shoulders, he indulges in one last brief gaze before temptation becomes too much, and leaves her to her rest.

--

When he returns a little while later, she’s rolled onto her other side, her knees curled catlike to her chest and her hands bunched in the fabric of the pillow as if otherwise it might escape. Gently, he sets down the glass of water he brought her and perches on the edge of the mattress, then hesitates, caught a second time by the sight of her amongst his sheets. It’s a good thing he doesn’t technically need to breathe.

“Leah?” he tries eventually, a murmur accompanied by the brush of fingertips against her shoulder.

She only groans, a petulant little moue of sound as her brows crease and she turns her face further into the pillow. He bites back a laugh and tries again, tries to ignore all the other ways his pounding heart thinks of waking her, if they were but closer.

“Leah, you’re asleep.”

Another noise, though this one drags into recognisable vocabulary as she rises into consciousness.

“Nate?”

He smiles. “Good morning.”

“Ugh. Morning…” She stretches under the covers, arches her back so that a little line of pops and cracks fizzle up the length of her spine. “What time is it? I think I left my phone in my jeans.”

“You know,” he starts, to distract himself from the sight of her mussed hair and the itch in his fingers to comb it out, “I do despair of the younger generations’ reliance on their electronic devices.”

She snorts, levers herself to sitting, rubs a hand along the back of her neck. “You are such an old man.”

“Technically, that’s true.” Feeling bold, he lets his hand fall to the curve of her knee. “How are you?”

“Stiff. Like I went ten rounds with an elephant,” she replies, without pulling away. “What about you? I see the bandages are gone.”

“There are a few benefits to being a vampire.”

The smile the comment lights on her face fades as she studies his face, a mournful tilt to her brows as she tracks the bloom of bruises that have yet to entirely fade from his cheeks. And then she starts, turns bashful even as Nate finds himself leaning forwards to offer reassurance.

“I should let you have your room back,” she mumbles. A blush is climbing in her cheeks; he can hear the rising tick of her heart rate as surely as the twist of the fabric between her fingers. “I’m probably late for work anyway.”

She’s in his bed. The sheets will carry her scent for days, perfectly innocent though the reason might be for it. His chest aches with the thought of her leaving.

“Of course,” he says anyway, rising to give her space to swing her feet onto the antique carpet. “Thank you for watching over me.”

Leah pauses, shrugs. “I’m glad you’re feeling better.”

She would hate to be told so, but he’s learning to read the thrum of truth she hides behind indifference, and he bows his head. “I’m sorry I worried you.”

“Nah.” She waves a hand, already padding across the room. “Your bed’s just more comfortable than mine.”

“Well then, I should say you’re welcome to it any time you like.”

By now they’ve reached his door. When she turns to bid him goodbye, the colour in her cheeks has risen like a sunrise, her bottom lip held hostage by her teeth, and whether or not she intends to draw his attention there, he has to fight the urge to reach up and set it free with the pad of his thumb.

“That’s a generous offer,” she manages, teasing.

“Entirely selfish, I assure you,” he replies. For an instant their eyes lock, and the temptation to lean down and kiss her, to coax her back inside and cradle the soft lines of her body between his hands, almost overwhelms his better sense. Only the memory of that darker temptation, the guilty desire for the blood he can still hear rushing beneath her skin, sickens him enough to keep his distance. He swallows.

“Have a good day, Leah.”

“Yeah…” she answers. “Yeah, you too.”

And then she turns, and he watches her retreat down the hallway until long after she’s passed out of sight.

#twc #the wayhaven chronicles #wayhaven #wayhaven fic #nate sewell #n sewell #nate sewell x detective #nate sewell x f!detective #nate x f!detective #nate x detective #leah kingston

[ladiemars]

𝕨𝕒𝕟𝕥𝕤 𝕒𝕟𝕕 𝕨𝕚𝕤𝕙𝕖𝕤 ⟡ 𝕔𝕙𝕒𝕡𝕥𝕖𝕣 𝕥𝕙𝕚𝕣𝕥𝕖𝕖𝕟

the wayhaven chronicles | adam du mortain x female detective (frankie fairbanks) | 2248 words | rated e

synopsis: after accidentally triggering a latent spell during one of their investigations, adam and frankie find themselves dealing with the unfortunate side effects.

In the late, still-rainy night, Frankie’s office was dark. But she’d spent countless hours working at her desk like this, so her hands knew where to find things even when her eyes didn’t.

Tina rapped her knuckles against the door, poking her head in without waiting for a response. “Are you still working on that case analysis?” she asked breezily.

“Huh?” Frankie’s mind was so preoccupied that it took her several seconds to process the question. “Oh. Yes.”

Heels clicked on the tile floor as Tina walked over to her desk. She planted one hand on the surface, the other on her hip, and examined the paper between them. “It looks done to me.”

It would, to someone like Tina. Frankie used to do both their paperwork when they partnered together, and then present it to Tina for signature. In exchange, Tina would do most of the talking on the field.

Frankie rubbed her fingers across the tense line of her brow. It was only as she did it that she realized her hand was smeared with ink. Ugh.

“My work has to be flawless,” she said seriously.

“Why?” Tina asked.

keep reading on ao3

#the wayhaven chronicles #twc #wayhaven #adam du mortain #a du mortain #frankie fairbanks #francine fairbanks #wayhaven detective #blight writes #wants and wishes #wayhaven fic

[serenpedac]

End of year fic rec list 2023

I was looking at last year’s list and how it said I was excited for this year, because of the Book 3 release. And it was great to be here on tumblr while people were reading it and talking about it, and to see new people join! While this list isn’t about b3 itself, of course it did affect the fics that were written. It felt like the book was a lot about setting up pieces for the next book(s), and I adore how people incorporated these new bits of information into their own fic. We may have a long wait ahead for Book 4, but with people here sharing their writing, their art, their thoughts, I don't mind it all that much!

As always, there are many wonderful fics that are not on this list, like the ones from the fic exchange earlier this year (I'm very much looking forward to the Secret Santa as well). Not because they don’t deserve to be, but because my energy and time are limited and the list is already so very long haha

Thank all of you who shared your beautiful writing <3 

List below the cut! Please be mindful of potential warnings

sincerity is scary - @thee-morrigan

Fine. She was fine. Despite the strain of these past months, she continued to be perfectly fine. Had gotten through everything that’d been thrown at her. Not entirely smoothly, certainly not effortlessly, but…she had gotten through it.

This fic had to be the first on this list because it was exactly what I needed to read after finishing Book 3, even if I didn’t know it before reading it. So much is thrown at the detective in that book and, for a detective romancing N, there’s that one conversation at the end that must leave some kind of impact… This fic felt like it finally gave the detective (and me) time to let it all sink in and reflect—no matter how much Holland tries not to think about it. I’m just really thankful this fic exists.

quiet and content - @sealriously-sealrious

There’s more she wants to tell them—usually she’s so good at crafting her sentences with eloquence, tying them together and making them flow like silk. But then Marin’s hands are in her hair again, and that goes entirely out the window.

Choosing one of aeruh’s fics to share on this list was so so hard! They blessed us with many lovely fics, and I absolutely adored the lighthouse AU as well! But this oneshot about Nat and Marin just has so much warmth. Just like Nat gets to relax, be the one who is taken care of for once, I felt like I could sink into this fic. The perfect comfort read <3

to drink from a poisened well - @thcscus

His eyes refocused, one last time. As gray and as beautiful as the last time she lost him. “Mason,” she breathed, panic bursting across her body like fireworks. Stay with me.

Rereading this fic broke my heart again! The premise of Mason losing his memories of a romanced detective hurts so good. And to then have the two meet again, years later… Ah, I don’t want to spoil anything, but the story, the characterisation, the ending, everything here was so well-written! On top of that, the writing itself is simply wonderful. Loved it all!

Just a Nightmare - @lykegenia

Her blood sings, goads him, and his fangs lengthen behind his lips.

The start of this fic is so incredibly sexy!! And the rest is also so good. I love how Lykegenia explores what might happen if N stayed the night with the detective—something that was notably absent in b3. To add to that, Nate and Leah are one of my favourite couples, so to see the growth in their relationship in how Nate decides to trust and open up a little more at the end was lovely.

you make me laugh again, feelin’ so good - @lovelyfoolish

She used to think of these early-morning-after conversations as uncomfortable half-somethings. But they’ve become worn, softening the way leather does, or wool, and now the incomplete sentences feel more like uncut jewels, rough with possibility, an entire language constructed from what they leave unsaid.

A wonderful slice-of-life fic between Mason/detective. I love how it shows the beauty of a seemingly everyday moment. There’s something so delicate about this stage of their relationship, in how they have grown closer and more familiar with each other and are starting to share these “ordinary” moments, but there’s also a lot that’s still unexplored. This fic and its prose capture that beautifully. 

Scarlet Welly Boots - @cigarettesandinevitablebetrayal

“You’re going to be the best mum I’ve ever had. I know it.” He looks back down at the boots in his lap, wrinkling his nose. “Even if you buy me boots.”

I will always be in awe at the thought people put into the backstories of their OCs and this fic is an amazing example of that. The impact of Rook’s death is felt throughout this story, affecting the relationship between Ciaran (Raine) and Rebecca. But what I love the most about this fic is the bond between Ciaran and his brother Eoin. There’s this part in the second chapter that made me so soft <3 I know the detective canonically is an only child, but we need more sibling relationships! 

Half Past Seven? A Post It Note - @agentnatesewell

Don't you know, my beloved, I will give you all the seconds of my immortal life?

A short, sweet and little bit spicy fic! N leaving notes for a romanced detective is one of my favourite things and this note is so wonderfully Nate! His voice, the beautiful language in which he reminisces about the night before, how he thinks about their future together <3 The loveliest little treasure of a fic that I only discovered this year.

I Can’t See Me Lovin’ Nobody But You - @plasticdodecagon

His daughter, Avery. Her sweet smile and her chubby cheeks and her big, curious eyes. How he didn't want her to grow up without a father, how he didn't want her to feel lonely, how he always wanted her to feel loved.

Speaking of sibling relationships, this Rook lives AU has some wonderful ones as well! Reading about the family that the detective could have had, if Rook hadn’t died, may be a little bittersweet, but it’s mostly very heartwarming. PD’s interpretation of Rook is amazing, and this alternative take on how UB meets (not-detective) Avery and gets thrown into family life has been great! I’ve been enjoying every part of this fic so much!

Nightswimming - @nerdierholler

Beside him, Ethan floated, bathed in moonlight, stars reflected in his eyes.

First of all, this quoted sentence is beautiful and evocative and will stay with me for a while! After the pain b3 brought for A-mancers, this ficlet was like a soothing balm. Adam finally accepting his feelings and the tranquil feeling this brings him were written so well. The entire atmosphere of this fic was wonderfully quiet and peaceful.

Breaking the Yearlings - @evilbunnyking

That first night Adam invited him to his own rooms Tobias had entered slowly, cautiously, running his fingers over the fireplace mantle and then the carvings of the bedposts, and all that Adam had wanted was for him to touch him, instead.

This one kind of feels like cheating, since it was also on last year’s list, but Tobi and Adam have my entire heart. Bunny weaves Adam’s (and also Tobi’s) past and the present together beautifully and the writing is gorgeous, always. My favourite part was when Adam finally met present-day Tobi, which was as impactful as might be expected!

inside this place (i call our home) - @thelionheartedo3

Adam’s arms are still crossed over his chest, but he doesn’t tell Ely no. Mango stretches a paw out towards him, mewling, and Nate hides his smile with a hand over his mouth as he watches the stern mask melt off of Adam, shoulders dropping from their hunch.

Fluff!! This was pure and adorable fluff in the form of an orange kitten. I fell in love with Mango at first sight while reading this fic, haha! It’s so much fun to see UB reacting to having a kitten around the warehouse. I was looking forward to rereading this one a lot and it was still every bit as heartwarming as I remembered.

Finally, a very lovely person suggested that I should also celebrate myself, something I don’t find easy to do. Thank you, sweet friend, for your message and for giving me this nudge <3 Here is a snippet I wrote on a whim, but that has by now become part of my HC for Yael and Nate, in which that one conversation at the end of b3 ends with them breaking up. I hope to some day continue this storyline and give them the happy ending they deserve.

#fic rec #rec list #the wayhaven chronicles #one day i will stop making these lists so long asfadsfd

[nat-seal-well]

Idk I find it… interesting? Ironic? That for all that N hates being seen as “perfect” it doesn’t stop them from putting the Detective on a pedestal. It’s just something I like to think about a lot <3

#the wayhaven chronicles #twc n sewell #twc nat #twc nate #fun thoughts to entertain me at night when I can’t sleep #that may or may not show up in a fic at some point

[fauville]

fandom: the wayhaven chronicles

rating: mature

pairing: ava du mortain/female detective (vesper graves), nate sewell/female detective (charlie langford)

chapters: 1/?

A/N: i'm so nervous posting this because i've talked about it a lot here in tumblr. thank you to everyone who has been supportive and excited with me!

tag list: @agentnatesewell @carriehobbs (let me know if anyone else wants to be tagged for new chapters!)

summary:

The beach was the first thing she came up with. She dreamt the large blue waves, the slippery rocks, the hot sand and the white laughing seagulls that fly above her now. It was a feeling she could not describe: creating something like she was a God. It was exhilarating.

Then Rook told her she had been in a coma for three years. That was harder to swallow than the shaping of dreams, somehow.

Or: In theory one should be able to escape limbo by dying. This is not true for Vesper Graves or her father, and Unit Bravo is sent to investigate.

read in ao3.

#twc #the wayhaven chronicles #twc fanfic #ava du mortain #nate sewell #a du mortain #n sewell #fic: inception au #vilna writes

[wayhavensecretsanta]

Overview

Here's a list of all the wonderful fics that have been written for this exchange 💖 Thank you all for being a part of this!

My spirit's alive, I want you to know. by @hypnostanatos for @evilbunnyking

mysterious fathoms below by @ava-du-mortain for @wayhavenots

Resilience by @deepinotomehell for @stolenoc

devotion's shadow by @rosejellyy for @deepinotomehell

Movie Night by @sanguineverefae for @apenapaperandadoofus

This is more than enough by @lalizah for @grapecaseschoices

Imprints by @stolenoc for @thee-morrigan

by allegoric bards by @agentnatesewellfor @lalizah

Beside this fountain's brink & Covalent by @wifebeast-s for @agentnatesewell

thank you for being a friend by @grapecaseschoices for @rosejellyy

Areen's Beacon by @sunshineandviolets for @ava-du-mortain

Hold on tight by @slushrottweiler for @doulyeah

midnight, the stars, and you by @thee-morrigan for @slushrottweiler

I Can Kerry a Tune by @wayhavenots for @itsren-again

Hypersenses & Stolen Glances by @doulyeah for @sanguineverefae

Movie Night by @sanguineverefae for @apenapaperandadoofus

strawberry menthos by @ejunkiet for @sunshineandviolets

Come Night, Come Morning by @lykegenia for @ejunkiet

Campfire woes by @sustainably-du-mortain for @hypnostanatos

Familiar by @itsren-again for @sustainably-du-mortain

Shearing the Rams by @evilbunnyking for @wifebeast-s

Under the Rain by @apenapaperandadoofus for @lykegenia

#gifted fic #wayhavenficexchange #the wayhaven chronicles

[aprilmr]

What I really need is a classic beach/hot springs filler story with UB, where they finally get to go on a vacation but end up entangled in some supernatural shenanigans that must be dealt with. In true anime fashion all of this must take place before shit really hits the fan so in between books 4 and 5 methinks.

#this post is sponsored by detective saying 'i need a break' every 10 minutes in b3 #i wish i could write well so this idea could come true 😔 #the wayhaven chronicles #if anyone has a fic with similar plot pls send it my way i will devour it thank u #shut up april

[lykegenia]

Wayhaven has had its ups and downs in the past few months, and for Detective Leah Kingston, dealing with vampire serial killers and mysterious plagues has become something of a routine. Good thing, too. The body of a murdered supernatural has just been discovered in the alley behind a local bar - and everything, really, just gets weirder from there.

Between the search for the dead man's killer, keeping the Agency at bay, and trying to navigate the new, uncertain waters of a relationship with a very suave vampire boyfriend, Leah has her work cut out solving the mystery, especially when it beomes clear she's hunting more than just a murderer.

#twc #the wayhaven chronicles #f!detective #leah kingston #nate sewell #n sewell #nate sewell x f!detective #nate x f!detective #nate x detective #nate sewell x detective #tina poname #murder mystery #wayhaven #wayhaven fic #wayhaven fanfic #my writing

[agentnatesewell]

I'm very curious about your theory 👀(you have such good ones, really I am in awe at how you tie different snippets of info together) But I can understand if you're not ready to share yet, so, if you maybe do want to share: which routes are you planning on replaying?

(ofc, if you want to share more, I'm all 👀👀👀, I'm just trying to show some restraint here haha)

Hello, Seren! Anything for you, my friend! And thank you for asking!

It’s not fully formed yet, and I need to play the M route again to be sure, as I may have absolutely overlooked something —

It branches off N and touch and I definitely think their Tier X power has something to do with touch

When N and A touch, it’s usually to calm each other down, or to show some empathy for each other. When N and F touch, like the hug in book three, there’s comfort and safety

We see N does place an understanding hand on someone’s arm or shoulder, and I think a lot of times, it’s them being a touchstone, to show they’re there

But what about M? We know M with their hyper senses wouldn’t particularly care of it - they have their personal space - and there is a scene in M’s route where A touches M and M has an immediate reaction

So, I don’t know if it’s really a theory, per say, but a curiosity. If N’s touch is related to their Tier X ability, and M’s hypersenses (and maybe even their Tier X pheromone ability), what would happen? If N were to touch their shoulder as A did here?

Might be goose chase on my part, but it’s been something on my mind

(And thank you for the compliment! My mind goes in many different directions when it comes to this story)

#so excited to read your fics you posted! #tbh this may be nothing but i have thoughts and curiosities! #twc #ask #the wayhaven chronicles #n sewell #twc m

[tumortain]

NOT THE FUCKING CARGO PANTS PLEASE ENOUGH!!!!!!

#adam du mortain #i need someone to write a fic where the detective sets these fucking pants on fire.... please...... #the wayhaven chronicles #twc book 3 #twc spoilers

[delucadarlingwriting]

♡ last line tag game. share the last line of your wip and tag as many people as it has words.

I got tagged by @deepinifhell ! Thanks!!

I’ve been practicing my teeline shorthand by writing out some fic in my spare time. Lately I've been chewing on an AU where Barbie is 1) does magic with verbal/gestural components (inspired by this post) and 2) is frequently hired by Trappers for Reasons. Mason and Barbie meet when Unit Bravo busts in on some work she's doing for a local group of Trappers, she tries to magic blast him and...:3c

Here's a picture of the last line I wrote:

Writing hasn’t been the hardest part of shorthand, it’s been translating it all back to longhand. Here's what it says:

It’s all she knows, but surely there’s better opportunities for someone as clever as she is.

This bit is after Barbie's been captured and is being taken back to the Agency. She has no plans to stay captured. She also has A Huge Fucking Ego.

Now, for my part in this game...I'm going to tag...@whirly-wind @agentnatesewell @serenpedac @nat-seal-well @evilbunnyking

#darling writing #twc #wayhaven #darling speaks #wip #tag meme #The fic is very disjointed #mostly because the majority of the work is trying to write in teeline instead of long hand #but I'm having fun with it! I may take the pages I've written out by hand and use them for a future fic project #I really really want to focus on In Search Of before I start anything new though #barbara 'barbie' robertson

[nat-seal-well]

One thing I think about often is Nat snuggling with the rabbit plush from the carnival. Maybe it happens one night when she’s in the middle of realizing her attraction to the Detective, and it still smells like them, just a little, from that brief time when they were holding it. She’s trying her best to sleep it just isn’t happening so she holds it to her chest, and part of her feels a little silly and foolish, because she’s a vampire of 300 years and shouldn’t need a stuffed animal to sleep. But it’s so soft and when she buries her face in the fur and breathes in, the faintest trace of the human she’s enamored with is still there. It brings her more comfort than she thinks it should—but it works. She holds it to her chest and dreams about a detective she can’t get out of her mind

#the wayhaven chronicles #twc n sewell #twc nat #marin snuggles with it a lot after they get together #so that it always smells like them #I adore nat and she deserves to be comfy cozy #will this be a fic? maybe

[fauville]

sweet dreams

fandom: the wayhaven chronicles

rating: mature

pairings: ava du mortain/female detective (vesper graves), nate sewell/female detective (charlie langford)

chapters: 3/?

A/N: ROOK!!!!!!!!!

taglist: @agentnatesewell, @carriehobbs, @lalizah, @saintalessia (let me know if you want to be added or removed)

summary:

This is what her life is right now, she thinks.

Dreaming of endless and endless breakfasts with her father in limbo. She wonders if she has been forgotten in the waking world after three long years. She wonders if she still matters to the universe.

“What are you thinking about, little dove?” Rook asks her. He has a stain of ketchup on his chin and his eyeglasses are crooked on his nose, which makes Vesper smile a little despite her inner gloom.

read in ao3.

#the wayhaven chronicles #twc #twc fanfic #ava du mortain #nate sewell #vilna writes #fic: sweet dreams