FIC: Borrowed Magic [3/5]
Rating: T
Fandom: Stardew Valley
Pairing: Shane/Female Farmer
Tags: Pre-Relationship, Developing Friendship, Grief, Alcoholism, Depression, Grief/Mourning, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Angst, Slow Burn, Flirting, Fluff
Word Count: 4,769 (this chapter); 11,466 (total so far)
Summary: The farmer has a way of making ordinary things seem like magic. Shane just has a hard time believing it. Also on AO3.
Previous chapters: One | Two
Shane barely made it two steps inside the Saloon before Marnie bustled up to him, two pizza boxes stacked in her arms. A couple of other, smaller boxes balanced on top.
“I told Jas we could have a pizza night,” she said, in answer to the look he was giving the boxes. “Didn’t have time today to throw something together for dinner. You don’t mind, do you?”
A headache throbbed in his left temple. His hand ached from catching a box he shouldn’t have, but Morris would’ve docked his pay if all those bottles of olive oil had broken. All day, like every weekday, he’d watched the clock, waiting for the moment that Joja would release him. Tuesday nights at the Saloon were sparse. There was no crowd, no one to give him weird looks; he had his corner by the fireplace all to himself.
Instead, Marnie had promised Jas family dinner. His jaw clenched, which didn’t improve his headache. It wasn’t enough that he had to listen to Morris scheme about improving sales all day; no, the universe saw fit to heap extra punishment on him.
Play pretend, it demanded, using Marnie as its mouthpiece. Have a nice family dinner with your goddaughter and aunt. You’re hanging on by a thread, but don’t be an asshole. Smile. Smile wider.
Keep reading
bemorch:
Origins companions: Romance edition (+Dog)
FIC: Borrowed Magic [2/5]
Rating: T
Fandom: Stardew Valley
Pairing: Shane/Female Farmer
Tags: Pre-Relationship, Developing Friendship, Grief, Alcoholism, Depression, Grief/Mourning, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Angst, Slow Burn
Word Count: 3,839 (this chapter); 6,669 (total so far)
Summary: The farmer has a way of making ordinary things seem like magic. Shane just has a hard time believing it. Also on AO3.
Previous chapters: One
Lydia hefted her axe and swung. The log split evenly, a feat she’d only started to accomplish consistently over the last few weeks; it still felt profoundly satisfying. She tossed the pieces into the done pile and heaved another log up onto the stump. The motions were repetitive, familiar: lift, swing, crack, toss. Lift, swing, crack, toss.
Usually, this kind of work was meditative for her. It freed her mind to drift, thoughtless—the occasional idea or memory appearing, but just as quickly fading.
Today, though, she couldn’t stop thinking about that damn fish.
Keep reading
ruushes:
in the art book it’s mentioned that they considered having morrigan and isabela as dai-style advisors, and you know what that means. ultimate-sacrificed or succumbed-to-the-calling hof-romanced morrigan and left-in-the-fade hawke-romanced isabela middle-aged widow yuri. is what that means.
stardustrider:
Ceara Coveney as Elayne Trakand // The Wheel of Time S3E6
FIC: Borrowed Magic [1/5]
Rating: T
Fandom: Stardew Valley
Pairing: Shane/Female Farmer
Tags: Pre-Relationship, Developing Friendship, Grief, Alcoholism, Depression, Grief/Mourning, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Angst, Slow Burn
Word Count: 2,830 (this chapter)
Summary: The farmer has a way of making ordinary things seem like magic. Shane just has a hard time believing it. Also on AO3.
Notes: You’ll get some additional context from reading the previous entry in this series, Liminal Grief, but the references are minimal enough that this can probably stand alone. This fic starts shortly after Shane’s 2-heart event, and ends shortly before the 4-heart event. All five chapters are written; I plan to post one per week. Thanks, always and forever, to jkateel and bossuary/misslonelyhearts for their invaluable feedback on this fic.
The days got longer, spring turning to summer, until it was after eight o'clock and there was still some light left in the sky. By the time Jas went to bed, dusk was in full force. It was the best time to meander. The rest of the valley was tucked up indoors, getting ready for the night. There was little to no chance of running into anyone who would question the six pack Shane was hauling around with him. It would just be him, and the balmy evening, and several beers.
He meandered toward the pond. His head was already pleasantly empty; it usually happened like that, on a Friday. There would be no shift at JojaMart tomorrow, no shelves to stock, no conveyer belt to babysit, no Morris breathing down his neck. The weekend stretched before him, empty.
A thought attempted to form—a memory of what weekends used to be like, not that long ago. He squashed it. He didn’t want to ruminate, not tonight.
As he approached the pond, though, another anomaly threatened his plans. Somebody was already sitting on the dock. They had a bag, and a fishing pole, and a lantern. On closer inspection, in the light of that lantern, he knew exactly who it was. He stifled a groan.
This wasn’t the first time he’d run into Lydia here. Last time, he’d said a lot of stupid things. She’d arrived in the middle of his sixth beer, and he’d been feeling grateful for how she’d been so willing to let Jas use the treehouse on her farm. He cringed at the memory. He’d overshared—a lot. She, unusually, hadn’t said much of anything, just patted him on the arm as he’d gotten up to leave.
Ugh. He needed to find somewhere else to drink.
Keep reading
drawnsnake:
Inb4 I got a note from a bear and a sidequest from a raccoon
