a little sweetness seems just out of reach

Little Women

Continental Exchange by Snacky
Beth lives! Jo marries Laurie! it is the Little Women AU OF MY HEART. <333

~*~

The Raven Cycle

But to return, and view the cheerful skies by Philipa_Moss
Adam and Ronan miss each other. Oh boys.

~*~

Six of Crows

traveling songs by crookedverite
When Inej woke later, startled awake by the scrape of rope against her wrists, she looked across to find his hands gripping hers in his sleep. The sight of their fingers tangled together made her want to weep, or scream, or laugh. Here were two of the deadliest people in the Barrel, holding onto each other in the middle of the night like children afraid of monsters under their bed.

Those children had died a long time ago. They had become monsters themselves and raged wars because of it. But Inej had learned from her years on the Wraith that even the sea, great and furious and wild as it was, grew calm. It ebbed and flowed under the call of the moon. It lulled into soft pushes and pulls.

Was this how you learned to love being a monster? by holding another monster between your hands like they are walls, like you might fall apart if you let go? Inej returns to Ketterdam, harder and darker after three years at sea, but she and Kaz find their way back to each other anyway.

~*~

ain't no king, man, she's my queen

DCU

Dog and Butterfly by thekita
Sharp and melancholy look at Diana and Steve in the past, and Diana and Bruce in the present

Etta Candy's Last Stand by sanguinity
This is the way Etta is going to die: trapped between a bed and Diana Prince’s breasts. Oh, no, there's only one bed! Etta will just have to soldier bravely on! ♥♥♥

something left behind by sevenfoxes
Steve leaves Diana pregnant. Her family grows over the years. Lovely.

wear your scars by Miisakee
Cass and Damian bond over scars and terrible parents. Oh heart. #precious assassin babies

~*~

I've got just one regret to live through

Avengers

Indiana Barnes and the Curse of the Tesseract by SulaSafeRoom & follow_the_sun
Really fun Indiana Jones mashup/AU.

it'll take a better war by napricot
Steve nods and looms intimidatingly. “We had a very productive conversation while you were unconscious.”

Rage contorts Zemo’s face into something ugly. “What?” he repeats.

“Did your whole plan hinge on us not communicating with each other like adults?” asks Tony. The look on Zemo’s face is answer enough. “Oh my god, it did!” Wilson offers him a hand up, and Tony holds his hands out to everyone for high fives. No one takes him up on it. So much for team-building. “Hey everybody, good job, we used our words and we derailed this guy’s whole revenge plan, we are so great. Next up, figuring out the Accords!” The power comes back on, and everyone flinches and covers their eyes for a second. “Wait, how are we getting Barnes out of here?” A great fix-it not just for the plot dumbassery of Civil War, but for Tony and Pepper as well. Hilarious and adorable!

Perilous Underside of the World by eyres
"C'mon, Buck," he says. "Do you remember... we used to climb onto the roof on the nights it got too hot to sleep. Up over the fire escape."

Bucky stays just behind him as they work their way upward. "I don't remember," he says, not unkindly but wanting to be honest. "I don't remember much."

I don't know if I'm him, he wants to say. I don't know if the shape of me fits with the shape of him - with the shape of you. One morning, I'm afraid you'll look at me and realize I'm a stranger and your friend is dead and then where will I be.

He can't see Steve's face in the dark so they just climb. Steve gets captured and experimented on, so the Avengers pull back together to rescue him. tightly plotted, suspenseful, and full of feels. Heed the warnings, though.

Twenty-Six Flat Screen TVs and All-You-Can-Eat Hotwings by patchfire & raving_liberal
Natasha vets Sam before the start of CATWS. Quite thoroughly. *g*

*

Defenders

Earthquake Weather by smilebackwards
Jessica helps Foggy clean up Matt's apartment. *sniffle*

~*~

i'm done with elephants and clowns

Star Wars

And There Shall I Find by ambiguously
Leia crash lands and is injured and has only her father's Force ghost for company as she tries to get herself in a better position to be rescued. As you can imagine, she's not happy about it.

Balance Point by MirandaTam
After Malachor, Ahsoka haunts Vader. (Well, she did say she wouldn't leave him again! <3)

crouched on one knee in the dark by Siria
When they lay together at night, skin to skin and legs tangled, Chirrut's habit was to run his hands down Baze's back—to listen to the sounds of the temple and the sleeping city around them, to feel the alleys and streets and by-ways and squares in colours and etched lines beneath his palms. It was the kind of mantra that would have scandalised their old masters, but it made smiles come as readily as prayers to Chirrut's lips.

Baze's faith burned bright for years. NiJedha and its temple stood for a thousand generations. And then: gone, all of it. So sad and lovely. *sobs*

Respite by GirlwithCurls98
Anakin, Ahoska, and Rex have some downtime after a mission. Aw, this is so soft and sweet.

stars of hope in dark despair by tielan
Luke gets some guidance from Chirrut. Oh heart.

The Strongest Stars by savvygambols
Baze and Chirrut throughout the years. Oh heart.

~*~