Mod Post: Round 3 Lightning Drabble Round (Open to Everyone!)

[almostblue.livejournal.com]

Hello!

The mod team (roebling and myself, almostblue) just want to say again that we are so incredibly grateful to everyone who has written, read, and commented for this third round of TBB. Thank you for your time and effort and talent! It's been amazing to see so much great enthusiasm and energy!

While we wait for the last few stories to get posted, we're going to hold a Lightning Drabble Round!

Before I get into what that means, I want to introduce this year's honorary mods for the lightning round - i_luv_tvxq, (you may know her as @TVXQluff) and akmongs (@himchanni), who runs bapfanfiction. They are both wonderful people who keep the fandom running through recs, comments and kudos, quietly and without much fanfare. We think they're great, and we wanted to thank them for all of their hard work over the years.

So as this round progresses, feel free to ask them questions as well! If roebling and I aren't around (or aren't...awake, ahaha, timezones /o\) they are here to help you out :)

Our hope is that the Lightning Drabble Round will be a fast, fun, low pressure opportunity for everyone to keep writing a little bit more! Here's how it will work:

1) If you want to participate, comment on this entry with a pairing you'd like to write. Please keep it to one comment per pairing.

2) A mod (any mod!) will reply with 3-5 random one word prompts.

For example, you might comment with the pairing DaeJae. A mod will reply to your comments with the prompts: apple, blonde, sneakers, failure, nuna

3) You have until September 13th to write as many drabbles as you want based on those prompts! All the drabbles you write should be under 1,000 words. They can use any of the words, all of the words, whatever you want. Post your fics as replies to the mod comment, and title them like this:[prompt, pairing, rating, warnings] in the heading of the comment. There's no assigned posting times or deadlines, so you can post 'em as you write 'em!

You don't have to have participated in the exchange to take part in the lightening round! Anon commenting will be enabled so anon participants should also be able to take part. It's low stakes, so if you can only write one drabble based on your prompt, that's absolutely fine. 10 drabbles? Fine too! Real life gets in the way and you can't write at all? We get it.

If there are any questions we haven't answered just comment below and we'll try to answer them right away! Otherwise, that's it! Lightning Drabble Round starts now, and runs until 9/13! Hwaiting!!!

THE LIGHTNING ROUND IS NOW CLOSED! Please stay tuned for an updated masterlist shortly!

Comments

[littlefuji.livejournal.com]

part 3/4

Youngjae offers Junhong a single black pearl attached to a wrist cord on his not-birthday. It comes totally unexpectedly – it being a date Junhong had randomly picked when asked and had promptly forgotten about.

“I found this pearl while de-shelling oysters the other day. Nifty, isn’t it?” Youngjae grins, obviously proud of his find. It’s a small ornament, slightly misshapen but no less charming. The pearlescent grey sheen stands out nicely in the brunette’s coarse palm.

Junhong brushes the boy’s fingers by accident when he happily accepts the gift, and the touch sends tiny sparks up his skin.

Mischievously, Youngjae then brandishes a small woven pouch. “I also nicked this from sis earlier, so you’ve got somewhere to pop it in so the bracelet doesn’t go missing. I’m good at this, aren’t I?”

Junhong chortles as he moves to hug the brunette affectionately. “Thanks a lot, Youngjae-hyung.”

---

Himchan is shuffling about on the seabed, gathering seagrass in a basket in preparation to make dinner. Junhong meekly drapes himself over a large piece of coral, watching his brother lazily. “Channie-hyung, have you ever tried fried seaweed? It sounds weird, but it actually tastes really, really good.”

His comment makes the elder sprite halt in his movements.

Himchan’s expression is unreadable when he swishes a blade of grass at Junhong’s cheek. “Probably tastes better than the stuff I make, right?”

“Hyung, you know that’s not what I meant.”Junhong momentarily panics, not knowing what to say to soothe the other. He is silenced anyway when Himchan suddenly pulls him into a tight embrace.

“Junhong-ah… You’ve spent so much time out of seawater that your hair and eyes are darkening. I know you are aware of this,” Himchan murmurs into his ear, tone urgent and undeniably worried. The younger sprite feels his stomach lurch. The bracelet he’d kept on since that day feels as if it’s cutting off the circulation in his wrist.

“Soon, you will no longer be one of us. Once you leave the water, you’ll lose all your powers and never be able to come back home. You’re drifting away, Junhong, and hyung can’t do anything about it.”

“Please, Junhong, wake up from your fantasy and come back to us.”

---

“Youngjae, I have something I need to tell you.”

Junhong’s looking at the dirt floor as the brunette boy roasts cockles over a spit. Youngjae doesn’t reply straight away, beckoning instead for Junhong to turn over the skewers to keep the flesh from burning. His mind is racing a million miles an hour, but Junhong does the task obediently while Youngjae moves back to the bucket of shellfish. The smell and heat is tantalizing – the sprite admits that he actually can appreciate bits and pieces of seafood.

The water sprite hates himself.

Lost in his thoughts, Junhong doesn’t expect the warm strong arms that wrap around his waist, or the face of his beautiful human nestled in the crook of Junhong’s shoulder.

“You smell like the sea,” Youngjae breathes, nuzzling his neck and planting light kisses over the pale expanse of skin. The green-eyed sprite shivers, giving in to the pleasurable feeling. “So pure, and free.”

Youngjae continues thoughtfully, as if he’s been waiting for this day to come.

“I know what you are. We knew what you are from the very moment you walked through our door. It’s selfish of us, but the legends say your kind will bring us luck. So we were as nice as we could, hoping you’d leave them to live with us. Please don’t misunderstand – even if our intentions were not the best at the beginning, our affection for you is real. My affection for you is real.”

Junhong feels a sob tear out of his own chest. Salty droplets roll down the sprite’s face like torrential rain – The humans he loved so much were using him for their benefit the whole time. Himchan’s words come rushing back to taunt him.

Humans are notorious for having no loyalty.

Wake up from your fantasy and come back to us.

His hold on Junhong tightens when the sprite tries to wrench himself out of Youngjae’s grasp. “Please, hear me out till the end,” he pleads to the sprite sobbing brokenly in his arms.