Three Sentence Ficathon 2022 - Roundup Post 1

[mad_madam_m]

The 3 Sentence Ficathon is back early! It opened last Saturday and is already onto the second post (our wonderful host opens a second post once we approach 5000 comments, because Dreamwidth adds a captcha at that point and it can get a bit annoying to have to enter that every time).

So far, I've written 35 fics across 11 fandoms, including one original story and two fandoms I've never written for before. Take a look below:

Castlevania

Dracula/Lisa, Learn Something New Every Day
Prompt: Any, Any, "But demons can't feel love, can they?"

Dracula raised one dark eyebrow at her, a glass of wine held loosely in his hand. "And just who told you that, hm?"

Lisa studied her own glass of wine instead of answering. The Church was the source of that rumor—of course it was—but of all people, Lisa should have known better than to take their word as law.

And if they were wrong, then it meant the vampire sitting across from her was perfectly capable of returning her growing feelings.

Wasn't that a hell of a realization to have over the dinner table?

Trevor/Alucard, Taking a Break
Prompt: any, any, “I’m pretty sure I’m worthless if I can’t be of service”

"So what the fuck do I do now?" Trevor asked, staring at his hands, the right one still marred with the angry scars from his battle with Death. "I'm a killer in a world where they don't need killers anymore."

Alucard took a seat beside him and put his hand over Trevor's, threading their fingers together. "Perhaps you should start with taking a very well-earned rest. You did save the world, after all. A few months of relaxation is long overdue."

Gen, Mirror Mirror
Prompt: any, any, magic mirror

(Two fills for the price of one!)

"And just what is this?" Belmont asks, walking around the mirror that is at least a full hand taller than he is.

Lisa smiles beatifically. "It's a gift. A peace offering, if you will." She pats Vlad on the shoulder. "Isn't it, dear?"

Vlad growls, although it's more form than anything at this point—they've had the Belmonts over for tea too many times by now for Lisa to believe he's actually upset about this. "A magic mirror. Its companion is in my castle. My wife felt it would be an...appropriate truce."

"And it will make for much less traveling whenever Adrian and Trevor want to play," Lisa adds.

Belmont taps the edge of the mirror and chuckles, shaking his head. "Never thought I'd see the day the house of Belmont would be accepting a gift from Dracula."

Vlad sighs. "That makes two of us."

---

Lisa is sitting in her husband's study with her embroidery, working her way along the pattern that lines the handkerchief, when the mirror in the corner suddenly swirls to life. She jerks up, shocked, and opens her mouth to call out for Vlad—there's no reason for the mirror to be working, not this late—

A boy only a few years older than her son tumbles through, along with a younger girl, both with dark hair and bright blue eyes and Lisa's heart leaps into her throat.

She drops her embroidery and darts over to catch both of the children before they collapse. "Trevor! Katerina! What's happened? Are you hurt?"

Trevor looks up at her, obviously scared and trying hard not to show it, and wraps a protective arm around his little sister. "The Church came for us. They set the house on fire."

No. Lisa hugs them tightly, her heart hammering in her throat, and shouts for her husband.

Trevor/Alucard, To Be Fair, He Was Preoccupied
Prompt: any, frantically checking someone for injuries (they didn't notice they're hurt)

"Oh." Trevor stared blankly down at his leg, where one of the demons must've caught him. "That's a lot of blood."

"Yes, it is a lot of blood." Alucard shoved him down and pressed a bandage to Trevor's leg, wrapping it around his calf. "Hold still."

Trevor frowned and reached down toward the bandage. "I don't remember getting hit there."

"Clearly you did." Alucard swatted his hand away. "Hold still so I can finish tying this on, and maybe we can get you into the castle before you lose the rest of your blood."

Trevor/Alucard, Fate Likes Enemies-to-Lovers
Prompt: any, any, red thread of fate

There was a lot Sypha could do as a Speaker and a magician that she did not share with her traveling companions simply because it wasn't necessary; for example, neither Trevor nor Alucard needed to know that she could see the strings of fate that bound people, and that more specifically, she could see the bright red string that connected the two of them.

She imagined a half-vampire and a vampire hunter would not be happy to hear that they were soulmates right now. So she'd keep it to herself, and settle for keeping them from murdering each other in the meantime.

MCU

MCU, Sam/Bucky, They Name It Soot
Prompt: any, any, no such thing as too many kittens

Sam was putting his foot down this time. He really, really was. "No. Nuh-uh. Absolutely not. We already have two kittens. Three is too many."

Bucky held up the small black kitten, who mewed plaintively and rubbed its head against his chin. It was not cute. It wasn't. "C'mon, Sam. Like you said, we've already got two. What's one more?"

Two pleading pairs of eyes blinked at him, one pair yellow-green, the other baby blue, and Sam folded like a cheap suit. "Fine. But you're getting another litter box if we do!"

Sam/Bucky, Good
Prompt: MCU, any, to the moon and back
The air outside was thick as soup, so humid that Sam's skin felt wet the second he stepped out back. He spotted Bucky sitting on the edge of the porch, looking up at the waxing moon high overhead, holding a beer bottle loosely between his fingers.

Sam had asked him what he was thinking about, once. Bucky hadn't answered, but his mouth had gone flat and tight.

So this time Sam sits beside him and bumps their shoulders together, a companionable nudge. "You good?"

Bucky leans into him, and maybe it's Sam's imagination, but it looks like there's a hint of a smile on his face. "Yeah. I'm good."

Sam/Bucky, Thanks
Prompt: MCU, Sam/Bucky, "just say it"

"C'mon, man." Sam grinned. "You know you want to."

Bucky glared at him. "No."

Sam prodded him with his beer bottle. "Come onnnnn..."

"I'm not saying it."

"It's just two little words! And he did save your life. Just say it. Just say it. Just—"

Bucky scrubbed a hand over his face. "Fine! Thank you, Redwing."

Sam laughed and leaned over to plant a smacking kiss on the side of his head. "See? That wasn't so bad." He patted Redwing, sitting on the chair beside him. "We'll teach him manners yet."

Tiger & Bunny

Barnaby/Kotetsu, He Can Watch the Sunrise Tomorrow
Prompt: any, any, refusing to get out of bed

"Bunny..." Kotetsu leaned over and tugged at the blond curls poking out from under the covers. "Come on, get out of bed! You're missing the sunrise!"

"We are on vacation, old man." Bunny's voice was muffled. "I am not getting out of bed until the sun is actually up."

"But Bunny-chan—"

The blond curls disappeared under the covers entirely. "No."

Barnaby/Kotetsu, What's In A Name
Prompt: any, any, what's in a name?

Bunny had a thousand different ways to say Kotetsu's name, it seemed; each unique inflection imparting an entirely different phrase—sometimes it meant "Stop being ridiculous," sometimes it meant "we're going to be late if you don't move," and sometimes it meant "be quiet" or "don't touch that" or "please stop talking about our private lives while we're on live television."

But sometimes it meant "don't leave me" or "that was a very kind thing you just did" or "I need you" or "I miss you."

And sometimes—like right now, when Bunny was curled up against him and letting Kotetsu play with his hair—it meant "I love you, I love you, I love you."

Barnaby/Kotetsu, Valentine
Prompt: any, any, chocolate cake

"Eh, what's—" Kotetsu opened the box on his desk to find a chocolate cake inside, decorated across the top with a frosting tiger and a bunny. He couldn't stop the grin from spreading across his face. "Bunny-chan, did you get me a cake?"

Bunny was very focused on his computer, but Kotetsu caught the side of his smile. "Happy Valentine's Day, old man."

"Don't call me old," Kotetsu grumbled, and plopped the cake between their desks to share it.

Gen, At Least He Didn't Have Super Hearing Right Then
Prompt: any, any, butterfly kisses

"Heh, you like that?"

Kotetsu leaned close and blinked rapidly against Kaede's pudgy cheek. She kicked her feet and giggled, and then shrieked right in his ear.

He jerked his head back, his ear still ringing. "Ow! Don't scream in Daddy's ear, Kaede, that hurts!"

Tomoe hugged him from behind and laughed softly. "Maybe next time, you should try tickling her from a safer distance."

Gen, Always Put Your Diary in a Drawer
Prompt: Any, Any, "I'm not talking to you!"

"Barnaby, can you ask Dad to please pass the rice?" Kaede asked primly.

"Aw, come on, Kaede, Daddy said he's sorry!" Kotetsu protested.

"Barnaby, will you please remind Dad that I'm still not talking to him because he keeps snooping?"

Barnaby sighed and passed the rice across the table himself while Kotetsu poked mournfully at his dinner. "Next time, old man, maybe you should just stay out of her room entirely."

Gen, Origami
Prompt: any, any, origami

Ivan stared at the stack of thin, square pieces of paper in front of him, and then at the pile of misshapen origami creations just to his right.

"Huh." Rock Bison leaned over his shoulder. "I'd have thought you'd be better at that."

"I didn't choose my name because of my ability to do origami," Ivan muttered, and pulled out another sheet of paper to try again.

Gen, He Earned the Name "Crusher for Justice"
Prompt: any, any, highlight reel of my mistakes

"And ouch, that's going cost him a bundle in damage fines—Wild Tiger crushing not one, not two, but four trucks on his way to catch the criminal, and the actual capture was made by Dragon Kid! Tiger doesn't even get the points."

Kotetsu pulled his hat over his face and huddled over his drink; he'd really love it if the televisions in the bar played something other than a highlight reel of all his mistakes from the past week.

Barnaby/Kotetsu, Tiger's Eye
Prompt: any, any, collecting jewels that catch your eye / don't let a soulmate pass you by

Barnaby stared at the collection of glittering stones in the museum gift shop, the only things in color in the entire space.

"Aunt Samantha," he tugged on her hand insistently, "Aunt Samantha, what are those?"

She followed where his finger was pointing, and she smiled. "Well, those are tiger's eye. Why do you ask?"

"I can see them," Barnaby said. "They don't look like everything else."

Aunt Samantha's eyebrows flew up, and she pressed a hand over her mouth. "Oh. You know what that means, don't you?"

He shook his head.

She picked up one of the stones and held it out for him. "It means this is the color of your soulmate's eyes. Would you like to get one?"

Barnaby nodded, and left the gift shop clutching the tiger's eye tightly in his hand.

Raya & The Last Dragon

Gen, Six Years
Prompt: Raya and the Last Dragon, Raya and her father, "tell me our lost years"

Six years have passed in the blink of an eye, and Benja sees that his daughter has grown from a girl into a young woman—a leader in her own right—in what, for him, was the span of time between one breath and the next.

He is not far from her side as they navigate the reunion of the tribes, but it is not until much later that night that they are alone, and he takes her hands to ask her, "What has happened these past six years?"

A dozen emotions seem to pass over Raya's face, and then she collapses against him, sobbing, and all Benja can do is hold her and mourn the years they've lost.

Gargoyles

Gen, Haunted
Prompt: any, any, haunted house

"Do you think it's really haunted?" Alex asked, staring up at the old house with wide eyes.

"Could be," Broadway said. "It's really old. I bet a lot of people have lived there."

"And died there," Lexington added.

"Guys, knock it off." Elisa put a hand on Alex's head. "You're scaring him."

"I'm not scared," Alex protested, but he hid behind Elisa's legs anyway. Just in case.

Gen, Detecting
Prompt: Any fandom, any character, funny meeting you here

"Xanatos," Elisa grinds out. "Funny meeting you here."

"Yes, absolutely hilarious, considering I own the building." Xanatos puts his hands in his pockets and looks up at the warehouse, which is still burning, flames leaping a dozen feet up into the night sky. "I don't suppose you have any leads on what caused the fire?"

Elisa doesn't buy his innocent act for a moment. "And here I was just about to ask you the same question."

"Well, unlike you, I'm not a detective." Xanatos smirks at her. "So I'll just let you get back to detecting how this happened."

It takes everything Elisa has not to punch him in the face.

Gen, The Secret to His Positive Outlook
Prompt: any, any, tea makes everything better

Elisa buried her face in her hands and sank into her couch. "My mother's in the hospital, Derek and Goliath are missing, and to top it all off, I have you messing around in my kitchen!"

"There, there, Detective Maza." Xanatos strode into the living room and set a large mug of hot tea on the coffee table in front of her. "Have some tea."

"Do you really think that's going to make any of this better?" Elisa snapped.

"It won't magically make Goliath and Derek appear, and it won't heal your mother," Xanatos said, "but I've personally found that a good cup of tea means one thing is going right, and that's something, at least."

Gen, Sometimes It Takes a Supervillain
Prompt: Any, any, I have no interest in learning the rest of the Greek alphabet

"Owen, will you please accelerate our research into an option for distributing vaccines via water supply?" Xanatos closed all the browser windows he'd had open—to call the recent news "frustrating" was a quaint understatement. "This farce is affecting my plans for achieving immortality and I have no interest in learning the rest of the Greek alphabet."

"Of course, Mr. Xanatos," Owen said. "But I feel compelled to point out that you do know the entire Greek alphabet."

"Figure of speech, Owen."

Gen, Thinking on Your Feet
Prompt: Any, any, “no plan survives contact with the enemy”

"Well, this plan went straight to hell a lot faster than usual," Alex shouted over the sound of lasers cutting through the concrete above them.

Hudson laughed. "Aye, lad, but no plan survives contact with the enemy. You've got to learn to think on your feet!"

"Dad's plans do!" Alex argued, but Hudson was already launching himself over the wall.

Goliath/Elisa, Just a Scratch
Prompt: any, frantically checking someone for injuries (they're hurt but it's at least one of minor and already tended)

"Elisa." Goliath sat beside her, running a hand over her arm. "You're injured."

Elisa held up her arm for his inspection. "It's just a scratch, big guy. I've had worse."

Goliath groaned and pulled her close. "Don't remind me."

SK8

Joe/Cherry, Knife Skills Are Sexy
Prompt: any, any, hands

Kaoru sat at the bar with a tablet in front of him, flicking his way through his emails. His gaze slid over to Kojiro at the counter, chopping vegetables with a speedy, efficient flair, absently twirling the knife between his fingers as he moved between onions, peppers, shallots...

"Hey, four-eyes, what are you looking at?"

Kaoru did not startle, but he made sure his eyes were on the tablet so that Kojiro wouldn't see how his cheeks were burning. "My work, you overgrown gorilla, what do you think?"

"Mm-hmm." Kojiro slid a plate next to the tablet and kissed the side of his head. "You know, I can let you get up close and personal with my hands later."

Kaoru pushed aside the tablet and busied himself with his lunch. "You are insufferable when you're smug."

Kojiro kissed him again. "And you love it."

Gen, Unavailable
Prompt: Any, Any, That's just too bad

"Ainosuke-sama, there is a detective on the phone who wishes to speak with you."

Ainosuke turned from where he'd just finished donning his bright red matador outfit for S and tapped his way across the room. "Well, I'm afraid that's just too bad for them."

Tadashi lifted the phone back to his ear. "My apologies, detective. Ainosuke-sama has just stepped out."

Joe/Cherry, Sweater
Prompt: any, any, borrowing a sweater

"Hey, Kaoru, are you cold?"

"No, of course n—" Kaoru hasn't even gotten through his protest before Kojiro drops the sweater around his shoulders, all baggy and warm and stretched-out from Kojiro's ridiculous muscles. "And just what are you going to wear if I've got your sweater, you overgrown gorilla?"

Kojiro grins and flexes. "I'm fine, four-eyes. I've got enough bulk to keep me warm."

Kaoru swats him with his fan.

Yowamushi Pedal

Toudou/Makishima, Birthday Surprise
Prompt: any, any, birthday

"Tadokorocchi?" Yuusuke opened the door and stared, disbelieving, at his friend standing on his doorstep—his friend who was supposed to be in Japan, not in England, and in fact had been in Japan not even two days ago, Yuusuke knew for a fact.

"Makishima!" Tadokoro held up the box in his arms—from a bakery, it looked like—and grinned. "Aren't you going to let us in? It's wet out here!"

Yuusuke moved aside automatically and opened the door wider. "Us? Who's—"

Tadokoro shouldered his way in and kicked off his shoes. "I brought some friends!"

Before Yuusuke could say anything, the rest of the team shuffled in behind him, bitching about the weather and calling out overlapping greetings—Onoda, Imaizumi, Kinjou, Naruko, and—

"Maki-chaaaaaaan!"

Toudou tackled him, peppering kisses all over his face, and it took Yuusuke a solid thirty seconds to disentangle himself. "Toudou! What—how—"

"Surprise, Maki-chan!" Toudou jumped on him again. "Do you like your birthday present?"

"I—" Yuusuke looked around—at Tadokoro in the kitchen getting out plates, at the rest of the team dumping of their coats and loudly exploring, and finally back to Toudou. "Heh. Yeah, I do."

Toudou/Makishima, Sleeping Beauty
Prompt: any, any, soulmate mark in unusual place

"I don't know what's weirder," Tadokoro said, waving around his sandwich, "that your soulmark is Sleeping Beauty, or that it's on your foot."

Yuusuke tossed a pickle at him. "I'm weird, so having a weird soulmark in a weird place is normal for me."

Tadokoro laughed one of his deep belly laughs. "That's true! So do you think you'll wake your soulmate from a hundred-year sleep?"

Yuusuke rolled his eyes and threw another pickle. "It's just a story, Tadokorocchi. Who knows what the mark means? None of them make any sense."

He went back to his own sandwich and tried very hard not to think of the climber from Hakone Academy's team, the one with the headband who'd nearly beaten Yuusuke in their last race, who rode his bike so silently that his whole team called him "Sleeping Beauty."

That couldn't be his soulmate. Yuusuke wouldn't be that lucky.

Teen Wolf

Gen, Time to Update the Bestiary
Prompt:any, any, merfolk

Stiles scrambled onto the shore, coughing up saltwater, trying to suck as much oxygen into his poor deprived lungs as he could. He still wasn't totally positive how he was even alive right now, given that about five minutes ago, something had been actively trying to drown him.

Werewolves, werejaguars, evil fox demons...he really shouldn't be this freaking surprised that mermaids were real, too, or that they were assholes.

Star Wars

Finn/Poe, The Perils of Baking
Prompt: Star Wars, any, "it's not supposed to be that colour"

"Oh?" Finn leans over the bowl of icing, which is a violent and frankly terrifying shade of purplish-green. "Then, uh, what color is it supposed to be?"

Poe sighs and points to the back of the packet, which shows a brilliant sky blue.

"Oh." Finn winces. "Well, I'm sure it'll taste great? But uh. Maybe don't quit piloting just yet."

"Gee, thanks."

Gen, Appearances Aren't Everything
Prompt: Star Wars (movies), any, still flying

"What a piece of junk!" the farm boy says the first time he lays eyes on the ship.

"The garbage will do!" says a young scavenger of the same ship, decades later.

But despite everything (and despite all appearances), the Falcon keeps flying.

Gen, A Big Job
Prompt: Star Wars, Rey and Rose, being mechanic nerd best friends

Rose followed Rey into the cockpit of the Millennium Falcon and gaped. "Oh...wow. You weren't joking about garbage."

Rey laughed. "I really wasn't. But," she passed over a couple of tools, "it's nothing we can't handle, right?"

Rose grinned. "Absolutely."

Leverage

Gen, A Damn Fool
Prompt: Leverage, any & Hardison, "I'm glad you're okay," said by someone who has just been badly beaten up, to Hardison, who is perfectly fine

"Okay?" Alec repeated. "Okay? Eliot, of the two of us, I am not the one who just had a very large, angry man play the xylophone using a hammer and my rib cage."

Eliot smiled and coughed, his teeth staining red. "Yeah, but of the two of us, I can take it."

"A damn fool, that's what you are, a damn—" Alec scrubbed his hands over his face and climbed into the driver's seat. "Sit your ass down, we're heading to the hospital. And don't you dare argue with me!"

Parker/Eliot/Hardison, Substitutions
Prompt: Any, Any, inadvisable substitutions while cooking

"Orange soda, orange juice, they're basically the same thing, aren't they?" Hardison said.

Parker nodded. "I think so."

"Dammit, Hardison," Eliot grumbled, and shoved him aside to see if he could rescue the dish.

Original

Safety in Fog
Prompt: any, any, airship pirates

Julian stood on the deck, as near to the edge as he dared, watching the other airship approach—pirates, Makoto had said, before he'd disappeared belowdecks with a grim look on his face. He returned now and joined Julian at the railing, eyes on the ship still following them.

Before Julian could ask, a fog billowed out from their own airship, and in moments, they were completely enveloped, and they quietly angled south from their previous heading. Even so, Julian did not breathe easy until the pirates' engines faded into the distance.

"Remind me to thank Mx. Dahl for her speedy assistance," Julian murmured.

Makoto tugged him close and kissed the side of his head. "Oh, don't worry, she'll make sure you don't forget."

The mentioned Mx. Dahl has weather-control powers, hence the fog.