Three Sentence Ficathon 2022

[rthstewart]

This post is NOW CLOSED TO NEW PROMPTS!  PLEASE POST YOUR NEW PROMPTS HERE, IN POST 2!  Do continue to fill prompts here but please put all new prompts in Post 2.

 

Welcome to the Three Sentence Ficathon!

Here's a Friending meme!

What is the 3 Sentence Ficathon?
This is an open exchange where you answer a prompt with a fic consisting of only three sentences. It's open to all fandoms and you can post and fill as many prompts as you like, as many times as you want.

What do I do first?
You can start 3SF by posting prompts! When posting a prompt please format it this way:

fandom, character(s), prompt word/sentence.

Only one prompt per comment please. So, for example,

Star Wars, Obi-Wan Kenobi, I don't like sand."

Open ended and anthropomorphic fills are popular too, such as:

Any, Any, "I don't like sand."

or

Earth geography, sand, "I don't like humans very much, either."

What happens after that?
You answer other posters' prompts in three sentences (or more if you can't stop yourself) and fill as many prompts as you want, as many times as you wish. If you see that a prompt you loved has already been filled, go ahead and fill it again! Multiple fills of the same prompt are allowed and even encouraged! (We get really fun stories going this way).

Can I still post if I need more than 3 sentences? Or should I just abuse grammar in ways the English language never contemplated?
Yes. Yes.

But I'm not a member of Dreamwidth
No problem. You can comment anonymously or through open ID

I'm really overwhelmed by all the prompts and how much there is and how fast it goes. I can't read 1,000 prompts and fills. It's too much. 
I hear this a lot and it keeps a lot of people from participating.  The 3SF is big and it moves fast, especially at first.  I get overwhelmed, too, and I'm hosting the thing. With 2020 and 2021 sucking so badly you don't want something that's supposed to be fun cause you anxiety.  I have a couple of suggestions for managing the 3SF volume. 

• First, really, you don't have to read every prompt and fill on every page.  You can start at the last page of this and just go forward, or back a page or two.  It's fine.
  
• You can come and go as time and energy allow, you don't have to participate the whole time, and it drops off quite at bit after about 2 weeks and especially once we open a new post because this one is approaching 4,500 comments.
• Even after the 3SF and new prompting end, people fill prompts all year long.
• You can fill an already filled prompt and you can can leave a prompt that's already been prompted before.  People do it all the time. 

Always make sure you're looking at top-level comments only, not threaded. That helps a lot. Your screen should look like this.




But shouldn't I read everything to see if someone already prompted the same prompt I want to leave if someone already filled it? 
No.  Prompt as many times as you want, as much as you want.  It doesn't matter if someone prompted the exact same prompt.  Go ahead and prompt again!

I left a prompt and no one filled it.  Can I prompt it again?
Absolutely!

Can I spread the word?
Yes, please. I generally fail at creating banners and embed codes but if you create one and make it really idiot-proof, I might be able to post and share it.  Feel free to cross-post this entry. If you create your own banners or icons, let me know and I'll share!
Please share the 3SF with your followers, friends, and any channels and comms you are active on.  I'll post on fandom calendar, Tumblr, and Twitter, but I don't have many connections in other spaces such as Discord.

Here's my attempt at a text box that might go horribly awry.

<br /><a href="https://rthstewart.dreamwidth.org/172142.html" _fcksavedurl="https://rthstewart.dreamwidth.org/172142.html"><img src="https://rthstewart.dreamwidth.org/file/71907.jpg" _fcksavedurl="https://rthstewart.dreamwidth.org/file/71907.jpg" alt="" title="3 Sentence Ficathon 2022 Banner" /></a>




How long will it go?
The 3SF closes to new prompts on February 13, 2022. The entry stays open permanently and people post fills all year long.  (There were a bunch of new posts to the 2021 3SF this week!)

Are there any rules about cross-posting?
Nope, you can post wherever you want, whenever you want. A lot of folks collected their responses together and posted them on AO3 under the 3 sentence fiction tag. 3SFs are a terrific prompt for remixes and could be helpful for Yuletide bears, too.

What about spoilers, content and archive warnings, triggers, pairings, ratings, tags, and squick?

I thought a lot about this. It boils down to reader beware.  In my experience, this typically gets too big, moves too fast, and the stories are too short for content warnings and ratings to even apply. It is too big for me to moderate in this way. You should assume spoilers are fair game and that the initial poster and the responder have opted to use no content warnings or tags. This means AO3 content warnings for dubcon, violence, canon character death, underage, etc. COULD be present (and much more). I've found personally that I can skim and scroll by stuff that, from the prompt, I can tell isn't my favorite flavor of delicious cake. Use your best judgment, protect yourself, and be prepared to skip over things that aren't your thing. In this format, the obligation is on you, the reader, to protect yourself from triggering content.
Some posters do include warnings and spoiler tags or include spoiler space, but they don't have to do so.


Why is 3SF split among several posts?  That seems confusing.
It is confusing and we always lose momentum once we have to move to a second post. The reason is because at 5,000 comments to a single post, DW installs a human test CAPTCHA, which is a pain for users.  So, once this entry gets to the upper 4,000 comments, I open a new post.  If you've been waiting until things slow down to participate, when we open a second post is often a good place to join.

If I have questions, what do I do?
I'm rthstewart everywhere, here, Twitter, Tumblr, gmail and AO3.

A special thank you to conuly  .
Last year, Conuly started logging all unfilled prompts.
This year's (2021) unfilled prompts are here.
Last year's (2020) unfilled prompts are here.

Conuly asks that you not reply, as they want to be able to edit and add more prompts to the list.

 

Here, have some icons and banners and let me know if you've created your own!



      

Comments

[chanter1944]

Thursday Next series (Jasper Fforde), any, "I tolled the bell, man."

[rthstewart]

Star Wars Legends, Mara Jade, before all else, be armed.

Is that a lightsaber in your pocket or are you just happy to see me?

[syrena_of_the_lake]

“Worst undercover mission,” prompted Leia as she filled Mara’s glass (Whyren’s Reserve, naturally, as if a half-Corellian household could serve anything else).

“Boobtown,” Mara answered with a grimace; Leia arched an eyebrow and nudged the bottle closer to her sister-in-law. “Mining boomtown on Mindrin VI,” Mara elaborated, “I was undercover as an Askajian dancer.”

“Don’t they have—?” Leia motioned vaguely at her chest.

“Six breasts? Yes.” Mara drained her glass.

Leia tried to channel Han’s best sabacc face. “How did you do it? Better yet, why?”

Mara sighed heavily. “The follies of youth, Leia. Still, how else could I have smuggled in four thermal detonators?”

[sincereously]

ASOIAF, any, sister

[ruthchinn]

"We'll be as sisters," Margaery had told her. It's true that a marriage to a son of Highgarden will give her the Tyrells as good-family, but Sansa will never give up her own sister. Arya was wild and disobedient and she might be dead in the war or she might have escaped somehow but she's free, free as a bird, more free than Sansa is ever likely to be.

[(Anonymous)]

Attack On Titan, Levi, clumsy

[dariaw]

Leverage, Hardison/Eliot, one of the ways Eliot protects Hardison that has nothing to do with physical safety

Fill

[peaceful_sands]

(apologies in advance for the tortured punctuation - I was trying for just 5 sentences before admitting defeat!)

They're the other side of the con and both Sophie and Nate are now out of action with nasty colds, undoubtedly caught through a combination of the people they'd been dealing with all being ill and the truly awful weather, when suddenly Hardison realises that he doesn't feel sick - not at all which he thinks is really unusual or would have been not all that long ago.

It occurs to him that things have changed since Eliot and he got together and he looks across at the other man, who's in the kitchen prepping dinner and before he can stop himself, blurts out, "Eliot!" Eliot turns sharply, knife in hand bracing himself for a threat. "I'm not sick," Hardison continues, surprise still evident in his voice; the confusion on Eliot's face prompts him to carry on, "Nate and Sophie are both ill, everyone on the con had some kind of cold or infection, and Parker isn't feeling great and the weather is lousy and I was always catching stuff before but now..." He trails off not sure where exactly he's going with this. Eliot huffs in exasperation, turns back to his preparation where he pointedly picks up another red pepper and begins to dice it and suddenly Hardison realises that this is what Eliot does to protect him. He can't actually fight germs or whatever, but he feeds Hardison all this food that boosts his own immunity, he doesn't let him stay up all night gaming but makes sure he gets a proper amount of sleep and this is the result - Hardison is healthy. "You did it!" he said with a certain amount of awe in his voice, it gets a typical Eliot huff and shrug, but Hardison can see the small lift of a smile almost hidden by his hair and the angle of his head.

He stands up and walks across to stand behind Eliot, waits for the other man to turn, then says, "You did it. Thank you," finishing with a kiss before letting Eliot get back to his preparation.

[dariaw]

The Originals or Vampire Diaries, any 2 male characters, keeping a secret to spare his feelings

[dariaw]

Vampire Diaries/Originals or Never Have I Ever or Cobra Kai, any m/m, it was easier to hate him before realizing he was a really good kisser

Never Have I Ever, Ben/Paxton

[swirlsngirls]

It was a lot easier to hate Paxton when he was just the dumb popular guy Devi picked over him, who was admittedly attractive but no substance beyond that and being the subject of Ben’s resentment.

That was until Paxton showed up at his bedroom window, rain-soaked, wanting to apologize even when it was Devi’s fault, not his, that Ben had been hurt.

It was a lot harder to hate him now when he’d invited Paxton over to play video games as a gesture of good will, and one thing had led to another, and suddenly video game controllers and Devi were long forgotten; there was only Paxton’s warm lips over his, soothing the chill of his perpetually empty house.

[dariaw]

Any, the moment someone realizes the love triangle should be solved with a long-term triad/threesome

[primeideal]

(Crying Suns)

Rebecca isn't stupid--she's nearly as talented a roboticist as she is a pilot, and you don't become an expert in the laws of robotics without learning a little about the laws of humanity along the way--so when Oberon says "I've been watching your family for a long time, Ellys" she knows to hear my cloning facility isn't the only genetic experimentation I run.

When Ellys says "I'm not sure the Survivalists deserve the retribution that the Emperor plans for them," she hears I'm not sure I can do this much longer.

And when Okonkwo, wild-eyed and fervent, swears to her "I'd never do anything to hurt you, Rebecca, Ellys is like my brother, you just deserve so much better," she calls Ellys before Okonkwo can leave and says, "We need to talk."

[vialethe]

Shadow & Bone/SoC, Inej/Kaz, forever is the sweetest con

[acequeenking]

It's the little things, Jesper thinks, that give it away.

They're not the types to wear rings or pledge words in public or any of that -- too compromising on a mission, too risky a chance someone might see it and know you're vulnerable, all that.

But Jesper knows they're as good as married the second Inej's hand lands on his and Kaz lets it stand there for a full minute, and he doesn't bother to hide his widest, most swagger-filled grin at them to show his delight for them; vulnerability, maybe, but only for a second.

[vialethe]

Narnia (Tisroc & the King AU), Aravis/Khalid, broken me and broken them/and you are broken, too/open ears, their eyes are open/makes me call for you

AU-of-an-AU - Rahmat instead of Ram

[nasimwrites]

Aravis names him Rahmat, and he grows up to be the splitting image of her brother in all but expression. In no time at all, even the fiercest of Aravis’ slanderers fall silent, for there is no questioning the piercing dark eyes that instantly recall Rabadash Tisroc’s lineage — nor the way his brows draw together when he is angry, or the brightness in his delighted smile (so rare and twisted in Rabadash, but so purely joyful in Rahmat).

Rahmat grows up, and for a long time does not question the miracle of his birth, nor the tale of Aravis Tisroc, builder of bridges, bearer of the child of two Tisrocs, who rode pregnant into battle. Yet he notices the silence from his mother when his father is mentioned, the stormy glare in his Uncle Khalid’s eyes, the way his Uncle Ishamiel steers the conversation away.

A Prince in his position cannot be raised to be naive, and so he learns of the cruelty of child marriages, of the depravity-clothed-in-luxury that once ran rampant in his palace, of the inhuman practices still practiced outside of Tashbaan. Aravis Tisroc allows him to hear every testimony, even from a young age, that he may learn of the plight of his subjects and take part in its resolution. He hears every account, that is, but his mother’s own.

Still, it is not until he is nearly a man, in conversation with his cousins, that he comprehends the terrible truth of his parentage—of his mother’s age upon marriage, and the conditions in which he must have been conceived.

For many months, riding through deserts and gorges among people who do not know him on mission after mission in the Tisroc’s name, Prince Rahmat wonders how many times he has been his mother’s tormentor—his every childish glare and thoughtless comment a reflection of his father’s violence, his very existence the unwanted souvenir of the darkest years of his mother’s life. He wonders at the pain he has caused, and at how he may take it away, and it is so burdened that he returns to Tashbaan—victorious in name but ashamed at heart.

But now, wandering the palace with an adult’s eyes, he accidentally catches a glimpse of his mother’s private quarters—of the long fingers threading through her hair and cradling her cheek, of the low murmur of a Tarkaan’s voice, of how a kiss the Tarkaan presses to the corner of her mouth prompts laughter so carefree that it may have belonged to a girl. It is a glimpse of love, born in the greatest adversity and sustained in secret over nearly two decades—a love that raised Rahmat, too.

It is only then that he sees in himself what his mother has always seen: that the dark fire in his eyes is not cruel, but impassioned; that his brows do not hold a shadow of violence, but stubborn intelligence; and that his smile is not the descendent of a depraved Tisroc’s delight—but the offshoot of a rare blossom none but Khalid Tarkaan’s closest are permitted to see.

oh nasiiiiiiiiiiim....

[vialethe]

Narnia (Tisroc & the King AU), Aravis/Khalid, but there’s no seduction, only destruction

[vialethe]

Shadow & Bone/TGT, The Darkling/Alina, oh, you cannot love in moderation/you’re dancing with a dead man’s bones

[betony]

He thinks, with sudden amused malice, of little Alina's horror of she knew that her lips had brushed against the Black Heretic's, if she so much as dreamed that the hair she wound her fingers through was that of a man who'd lived twenty times her lifespan, if she had any inkling of the weariness he feels without her, day in and day out--
He thinks of her warm hands pulling away, her eyes shuttering; he thinks of the instant even her seemingly boundless faith will shatter.
He thinks he might see fit to hold his tongue for some time longer.

[vialethe]

Shadow & Bone/TGT, The Darkling/Alina, when i was a man, i thought it ended/when i knew love’s perfect ache/but my peace has always depended/on all the ashes in my wake

[acequeenking]

"How do you handle it?" Alina asks, breathless, laying on the war-room table beside him. "The death. All the people..."

"I learned not to care," he says; he slides his hand over her cheek and kisses her, a promise that she, one day, will learn to do the same.

[vialethe]

Narnia, Aravis, I saw the city through my tears/the darkness will soon disappear/be swallowed by the sun/I am coming home

[arveldis]

The gashes from the lion’s claws throbbed with a pain Aravis had never felt before, and the blood soaking through her tunic made it stick painfully to her back, rubbing over her wounds with Hwin’s every step, though the horse tried to be gentle; tears fell down Aravis’ cheeks, and she roughly brushed them away with her forearm, only to pull her tunic across her wounds again.

She gritted her teeth and grimaced, blinking away her tears, and she saw a hut in the distance; it was a modest dwelling, and it stood in a pool of light, light so bright that between it and her tears, the image in front of her became hazy and indistinct, and she thought she saw a city and a castle rising beyond the hut, and she whispered to Hwin to gallop faster, ignoring the pain in her back that flared anew as Hwin changed her gait.

She was coming home; it was a home she had never been to before, but she knew it was hers.

[(Anonymous)]

Harry Potter, Draco, telepathy

Harry/Draco

[octahedrite]

Empathy was bad enough, Draco thinks, rubbing his temple, but now his gift – his unasked-for, headache-inducing, totally unnecessary gift – has developed to the point where he can hear his classmates’ inane thoughts. It’s enough to put him off his breakfast to listen to his peers preening at themselves as they get ready in the morning, but then passing Potter in the Great Hall and hearing wow, those pants really flatter him makes him want to scream. Really, hasn’t Fate had enough fun at his expense?

[caramelsilver]

Shadow and Bone, The Darkling, So if you kiss me/ If we touch/ Warning's fair/ I don't care very much

Words Sound False When Your Coat’s Too Thin (S&B, Darklina)

[vialethe]

“Did you think this would stop me from doing what needs to be done, sweetheart?” he asks, breaking off the kiss, though some faint, long-dormant part of him still finds it agony to do so.

He has never reveled in being cruel, but it does amuse him just the smallest touch to watch Alina’s face, watching the shift in her expression from raw desire to muddled confusion, right through to hurt.

“You could offer me everything you have to give, and still I would expand the Fold,” he says, as gently as he knows how, and hardens his heart against hers breaking; let her have a taste of it, he thinks, of the pain and the loneliness, and does not add that it couldn’t be allowed to matter, whatever her feelings, whatever his own - not weighed against the good for all Grisha.

[paxilam]

any, any, antique knife

Final Fantasy VI

[anonne]

Locke nodded towards the ornate implement, and suggested, "I'll take that one?"

Edgar paused as he buckled his armour, saw what Locke was looking at, and said, "You will not – that's a priceless Figaro heirloom. Anyway, it's not a combat knife, it's a letter opener – I've no idea how it ended up in the armoury."

[paxilam]

lotr, éowyn & any, improved recipes

[paxilam]

any, any, birthday cake

Birthday Practise (Naruto; Sakumo, Kakashi, (Minato))

[kalira]

Sakumo eyed his cub dubiously, inspecting the mess over the counter and sniffing - it still smelled like sugar and chocolate; not things Kakashi was prone to getting into, generally.

"What are you doing, cub?" Sakumo asked, stepping fully into the kitchen.

"Practising!" Kakashi said seriously, attention riveted on the measuring cup he was holding. "Minato-nii's birthday is in two days and he told Mama he'd never had a birthday cake and he likes cake so he should have one." he said firmly, and Sakumo bit his lip, amusement and fondness mingling in his chest . . . with a trace of anger for those who had supposedly been responsible for their little nikkou before he quietly adopted himself into their family.

[paxilam]

any, any, night sweats

Small Favors [Disco Elysium; Harrier DuBois]

[fallen_stage]

You - It's another night of your existence and you can't sleep. Your body aches, your mind blurs, your bed is soaked in sweat.

Electro-Chemistry - It's the speed, sweetheart. And the alcohol. Great for keeping you up and moving, not so great for sleep.

Encyclopedia - The average healthy individual needs an average of seven to nine hours of sleep per night to be functional. Poor sleep, such as interrupted sleep, lack of deep sleep, or other sleep disorders can make one feel less rested.

Endurance - If you weren't such a mewling weakling you wouldn't have to rely on stimulants and let the booze do its job.

Logic [Trivial: Success] - Alcohol caused this in the first place.

Electro-Chemistry - And sobriety would make it worse!

Volition [Medium: Success] - You could choose it anyway, push through until in a year or two you can sleep deeply.

1. What about now? I just want to sleep.
2. That sounds scary, I'd rather be a drunk.
3. [Endurance - Formidable 13] I'm ready to dry out.

Ancient Reptilian Brain - Afraid that decison's out of your hands, long since you woke up from the primordial muck.

Limbic System - These habits are long since ingrained in you, Harry.

1. [Volition - Medium 10] I'll deal with this in the morning.
2. That sounds scary, I'd rather be a drunk.
3. [Endurance - Formidable 13] I'm ready to dry out.

Volition [Medium: Success] - Putting off the decision is easy; promising to actually consider the problem is the hard part. I'll hold you to that.

You - Great, another thing to look forward to in the piercing light of morning. For now at least you roll over, trying to find a gentle spot for your kidneys, and drift as you think of something that might be good tomorrow.

Esprit de Corps - There's always Kim! He never lets you down.

Electro-Chemistry - You still have his handkerchief don't you?

You - You do. You shuffle your hand in the coat on the floor and pull it out.

Perception (Smell) - It's full of the Lieutenant's scent. A pine-forward aftershave.

Electro-Chemistry - It's enthralling.

Volition - It's soothing.

Empathy - It's comforting.

You - It's no nightlight or downer, but it's as good a soporific as you can get right now. Your sleep is no more deep, but it is less turbulent, like floating quietly in a cloudy sky.

[syrena_of_the_lake]

Narnia Rthverse/Bringing Up Baby, Peter Pevensie/Mary Anning Russell, follow my lead

Narnia -- Popping in for breakfast

[rthstewart]

"Good lord, Peter, what are we going to do with her, she'll be carted off to the Circus," Mary cried and firmly shut the ballroom door so as to not terrify the other members of the household or random delivery girls and messengers that might pop by; the morning had certainly taken an unexpected plunge through the Looking Glass when Bayberry had popped out of the drinks cabinet and asked politely where she might find live game to hunt as she was very hungry.

"Well, one thing, right away," Peter replied looking uncommonly flustered; the prospect of a Narnian Talking Leopard roaming Oxfordshire looking for breakfast had managed to shake even his Sphinx-like, unflappable calm.

"Tell Lee to not try to clean the ballroom just yet and," Peter opened the door and called in, "Bayberry, I know you'll be thinking no one could possibly care if you chewed on the old bones in there while we find you a nice side of beef, but please do not for the bones are very, very old, as precious as anything in the treasure chambers at the Cair, and they will have a very unpleasant plaster aftertaste that would not satisfy at all."

[syrena_of_the_lake]

Narnia, Aslan & the Trickster, the inevitable comparison to Tom & Jerry

[syrena_of_the_lake]

Star Wars AU, Don Quijote the Jedi knight, windmills were the least of his concerns

[syrena_of_the_lake]

Narnia, Uncle Andrew/Jadis, she stays in London

Family Planning

[edenfalling]

She will need an heir eventually, and given how sluggishly magic flows in this new world, the best she can do is tweak biology rather than bypass its demands entire -- and while the man is a deluded fool with a weak body and a displeasing face, he does have magic in his veins; he will do for seed (carefully winnowed and sieved) until she finds something better, or his nephew grows old enough to be useful.

Such a pity, Jadis reflects, that his sisters had not been born male; either of them, even the softer one fading on her deathbed, would have made a vastly preferable consort -- perhaps even one she might tolerate to stand by her side in battle rather than lock in a well-furnished chamber to await her reluctant attentions.

Ah well. Lilith started with less when she came to Charn, and Jadis will outdo her ancestor in this as in all else.

[syrena_of_the_lake]

Lord of the Rings, eye of Sauron, spokesman for Clear Eyes (wow)