Three Sentence Ficathon 2022 Part 2

[rthstewart]

UPDATE 14 FEBRUARY 2022 -- 3SF 2022 IS NOW CLOSED TO NEW PROMPTS!  Do continue to fill prompts already posted but the 3SF 2022 is now closed.  We'll be back next year in a new comm (If I can get my act together).  Thank you again!

THIS IS THE NEW POST FOR PART 2 OF THE 3 SENTENCE FICATHON -- ALL NEW PROMPTS SHOULD BE POSTED HERE
You may continue to fill prompts (but not leave new ones) at the original Post 1 here but please post new prompts here, not there.  And if you're asking, hey is just me, or did this get enormous really fast? Why yes, yes it did.  Last year, it took us ten days before I opened a new post.  This year, it took us about 5.5 days to get there.  So, by all means, go back and fill in Post 1 and post new prompts here!

Also woops, in an indication of how busy I've been with other things, I neglected to post that for a third year in a row the awesome conuly  started a master list of unclaimed prompts and has been updating it as time permits.  Obviously a huge task! Thank you!

 

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

[ruthchinn]

Hunger Games, Lyme, duty

[(Anonymous)]

Any, any, marble sea

[ruthchinn]

Black Wolves, Lifka, family

[ruthchinn]

any, any, reincarnation

[ruthchinn]

Tortall, Nari (bird), protection

[ruthchinn]

Awaken the Stars, Ella, loyalty

[ruthchinn]

Awaken the Stars, any, heritage

[ruthchinn]

any, any, community

Obsidian & Blood, the priests for the dead

[notapaladin]

There was something to be said for Acatl-tzin, Palli thought. He cared. (Well, alright. There were a lot of things to be said for Acatl-tzin, some of them complimentary and some...less so. Like his seeming inability to sound pleased with anything. But that was besides the point.) Their previous High Priest hadn’t been a bad man—he’d certainly been better-spoken and more accustomed to leadership—but he hadn’t had a tenth of Acatl-tzin’s sincerity or determination. There wasn’t a priest for the Dead who wouldn’t defend their new superior with their life.

Which, of course, led to a certain chill in the air when the young Master of the House of Darts strode—no, more accurately slunk—into the temple complex with a handful of tamales. The last time any of the priests had seen him, he’d been at the forefront of a small army with a sword in his hand, seeming not to care at all that they’d all just been fighting for their lives against a vengeful ghost and a swarm of ahuitzotls. And that was after having been, so far as any of them could tell, second-in-command of a den of horrors run by that foul sister of his. Palli still had nightmares about that. He and the others watched with folded arms and clenched jaws as Teomitl made his way across the courtyard.

He managed three steps before Ichtaca, Palli’s new second-favorite person in the world, met him with a cold glare. “Teomitl-tzin.” The honorific was almost an afterthought in his mouth. “What brings you here?”

Better men than Teomitl had shrunk from that tone. Teomitl swallowed audibly, but straightened up and held Ichtaca’s gaze. “I came to bring lunch for Acatl-tzin.”

You came to what. Palli growled, taking a step forward, but Ichtaca threw him a sharp look and he froze. Right. There was no use in picking a fight with the Master of the House of Darts.

Besides, their Fire Priest might get there first. His eyes narrowed as he swept a gaze up Teomitl’s body, taking in the embroidered cloak and gold earrings with a frown. “Why?”

“Because he doesn’t take good care of himself!” The words burst out of him in a torrent and didn’t stop; Palli listened, dumbfounded, as Teomitl went on to enumerate all the reasons Acatl-tzin desperately needed someone to help look after him, since he was too self-sacrificing and diligent to remember to do it himself. Political advantage didn’t come up once.

Ezamahual looked at him, and then back at Teomitl. An eyebrow went up.

Grimacing, Palli nodded. It looked like Teomitl wasn’t so bad after all.

[(Anonymous)]

SVSSS, Shen Jiu, regrets

[(Anonymous)]

Any, any, If I fall, at least I am falling with you

[paxilam]

any, any, calling shotgun

[paxilam]

any, any, exchange

[paxilam]

Constantine, any, nothing in the fridge

[elementalraven]

Narnia, the Pevensies, the Gifts (from Father Christmas) are different/swapped/Edmund gets one

Edmund's torch, alpha version

[last_haven]

"Oh, but, Ed, Father Christmas didn't leave you out! Here, he sent this along for you," Lucy shouts, a little overeager, too excited to be reunited with him and trying her best to ignore the strained tension between the four of them since he arrived in Aslan's camp after his rescue.

She hands a lumpy package wrapped in butcher paper--apparently, Mrs Beaver wrapped it for them, too protect it during the journey--and it really does feel like Christmas as he tears the paper off. Inside, to his confusion, is a lantern although he doesn't recognize it as such first. It's perfect round and crisscrossed with rope that becomes a braided handle to carry it up at the top; there's no opening or latch to put a candle in, but when he touches the rope, blue light shines like a beacon inside, making him jump.

His siblings look just as perplexed at him. "We're not sure how you're supposed to light it, but I'm sure we'll figure out something," Susan offers him kindly.

He blinks at her. "You don't see the light?" Their confusion doubles and he realizes the lantern's light is only for him to see. It's an odd present, thoughtful, but not exactly a weapon for battle.

Still, years later, it makes for excellent use when one night, as he crept back to bed from a midnight snack, he'd use it to sneak up on an assassin outside Peter's bedchambers. He finds out in that moment that it was also indestructible the whole time when he uses it to crack the assassin over the head.

Useful, indeed.

[elementalraven]

Narnia, any, diplomacy

[last_haven]

Relations with Galma are always a delicate issue--while Galma is a duchy of Narnia, between various Narnian rulers and the White Witch, it often enjoyed the benign neglect of its colonizers. Every now and then, a duke came to power who tried to assert Galman independence, but it never won much favor with the population and usually Galma happily went back to what it was doing before without Narnia having to step in and muddy the waters.

Edmund and Susan were both very strict about this with Peter before he arrived for their first visit of state in Galma--do not overstep and upset the balance. He hadn't saw much need to at first; the Duke was cordial and deferential, not at all trouble making. His politics didn't tend towards independence and he was equally interested in maintaining the status quo as they were. It seemed like it had all been a lot of fuss over nothing to Peter.

And then he'd met the Duke's young bride--emphasis on young as she was Peter's own age, a good two decades younger than the duke, and while that perturbed Peter, he could have ignored it as a custom of this world that he would just never appreciate. The sadness in the girl's eyes, however, spoke another story, as did the desperation in her voice as she snuck into his guest room and threw herself at his feet, clasping his hands in supplication.

Peter had heard of selkies before--creatures like seals who could shed their pelts and look identical to humans. If you stole their pelt, you controlled them because they had no way to return to their true forms. He might have hesitated to believe her if she hadn't taken him to see the others, the literal children the duke had stolen, to be raised and traded away as brides and slaves.

Well, he thought, stalking towards the duke's chambers, his blood pumping like Aslan's roar in his ears and hand on his sword hilt already, I guess I'm just not cut out to be a very good diplomat.

_____
[A/N: Someone stops Peter before he literally kills the duke, but it's a close thing and then there's a big hubbub when they instead toss him out of power. I have no idea what happens to selkie girl afterwards, but I do kinda ship her and Peter. I have no way to work this into the fill though, so just enjoy this post script.]

[elementalraven]

Narnia, any, spycraft

The Power of the State

[silveradept]

Those who emigrate to Narnia are warned that the trees and the animals themselves speak and report on anything they deem suspicious. They whisper that the change from the White Witch to the Children of Adam and Eve was a change more in name than in substance of ruling.

The first time a newcomer spills their heart to the seeming silence and receives the thing they need most, though, they realize the same mechanisms that can be used to oppress can also be used to uplift.

[elementalraven]

Narnia, any, battle

[mouseyear]

It’s not like what he expected battle to be. They didn’t tell the whole story in school and Peter knew that, and the military minds of Narnia had attempted to prepare him – they didn’t sugar coat it like school had. But he doesn’t think anything could have prepared him for the chaos of an actual battle. He scarcely knows what is going on around him and Gem as they ride above the chaos. And he doesn’t for a second believe he is safe.

He feels so far away, he should be out there, fighting, instead of up here, watching the battle with an almost birds eye view. It isn’t like what England taught him to expect, but the advisors had prepared him well and the reality is not unexpected. And as he rushes into the battle, his heart racing he finds that the battle itself is not what he is afraid of.

Aslan leaves them on the top of the cliff looking down as the last of the Witch’s army is routed. It looks as a dance to her mind as she scrambles towards it, barely held back by the hand on her shoulder that swiftly makes its way into her own. The battle will be over before they get there and they mustn’t hide away on the cliffside.

The Lion goes roaring down the hill after he leaves them and she is left with a feeling of helplessness as she stares down into the battle below. It is in Narnia’s favour now and it still looks horrific. Her brothers are down there now, and she is hesitant to join them. No one had been preparing her for battle, not in England and not in Narnia. She thinks she can stop an enemy but she does not know whether she is ready to.

[elementalraven]

Narnia, any, storytelling

[elementalraven]

Narnia, any, courtship

Lucy/Sea Girl, i'll make this pairing a thing even if i'm the one who has to write every fic for it

[last_haven]

It starts small; Lucy finds a shell sitting on the railing where she first stood and spotted the Sea Girl. She dismisses it out of hand as just one of the sailors of the Dawn Treader leaving a treasure of theirs out, forgotten. She takes it, mostly for safekeeping, since she doesn't want such a beautiful, delicate thing to break from a careless accident.

A few hours later, she finds a bouquet of the sea lilies, tied with seaweed, waiting for her in the same spot. That gives her pause, since she was sure Caspian had ordered the flowers to be left alone since they were already making a mess with the ship going through them. Still, though, they are lovely and Lucy has to hurry and get them in water before they wilt.

The shepherd's crook she finds the next morning cinches it; no sailor would have a good excuse to bring such an unwieldy thing onboard and it looks too much like the Sea Girl's crook to be a coincidence. Has she been following them? Lucy hopes with a thrill that she is--she really had regretted not trying to make contact though their eye's meeting had only been a scarce as a minute. She takes the crook and gives it an experimental wave--it has good heft. She could easily crack someone's head with it, always a plus in her book. She takes it to her quarters, for safekeeping.

It is evening when she finally tells Edmund and the others about the gifts--she couldn't really hide the existence of a tag-a-long, for safety's sake--and when she takes them to the railing, to show them the place she kept finding the presents, instead of a present, it's the Sea Girl waiting for them there.

They all stand, gawking at each other. And then, to their surprise, the girl speaks in perfect, if oddly accented, English at them. "You have accepted my gifts. I'm honored that you have accepted my proposal. We wed at your convenience, my lady."

There is a silence for a long time, but an awkward giggle escapes Lucy's throat and before she can stop herself, she turns to Caspian and says "Fancy that! I got engaged on this trip before you did!"

[elementalraven]

Narnia, any, adventure

[elementalraven]

Narnia, any, magic

[elementalraven]

Narnia, any, culture

Suddenly, a wild Peter/selkie story appears!

[last_haven]

Sequel to this story. I just want selkie girl to be happy. No idea what her name is though. Am open to suggestions.
---

Peter is not a fool and, despite nearly ruining relations with Galma that one time, he was not a bad diplomat. But he was certain he was going to offend someone tonight and all he could hope for was that it wouldn't be his fiancée at least.

"You'll be fine," she promised, pulling him to the big bonfire on the beach. They had to dodge the sweaty, gyrating bodies around them, which was not made easier for Peter because all he could do was keep his eyes pointed up to the stars to avoid accidentally gaping at the nude party-goers around him. Honestly, the autumn bacchanals were going to seem tame in comparison after this, what with some of the selkie couples not doing a great job of finding private places to canoodle.

"That," he grumbled, as he got elbowed in the kidneys by an overenthusiastic gent who then got chased away from a young lady by the beachmaster. "That is all well and good for you to say. I'm the only one who refused to take his trousers off."

She laughed and he almost forgot his discomfort--two years ago, she'd been too withdrawn and sad to smile, even after they had her marriage annulled and her husband jailed. The year and a half she'd been in Narnia had done much to help her heal, but tonight was the happiest he'd seen her since he asked her to marry him last month. The excitement on her face drove home how worth all the trouble it'd been to talk to the Narnian selkies into letting her join their celebrations--the Galmian selkies exiled her for the loss of her pelt, but Narnian selkies could never harden their hearts to a mistreated lady--or refuse such an earnest request from their high king.

"You will be fine," she repeated again as she finally deemed their proximity to the great bonfire good enough and rearranged his hands on her so they could dance. "And," she added, "if you are having second thoughts about the trousers then let me tell you, I certainly wouldn't mind if you took them off."

On the other side of the fire, the drummers started a new song and a cool ocean breeze blew through, reminding him that the best way to stay warm tonight would be to dance. Setting aside his embarrassment, he let her pull him into the wild dance and said "all I ask is that if I do mess something up tonight, don't tell Ed and the girls about it."

She laughed and he knew that it was all definitely worth this for that grin alone.

[elementalraven]

Narnia, any, worship

[last_haven]

The air in the Temple of Tash is thick with perfume and incense, supposedly to appease and soothe the Tash so their worship of him won't awaken any bloodlust when they interrupt him. It's an odd, unsettling gesture to Susan--to be so afraid of your own god that you have to sedate him with calming smells so he won't be mad at you for worshiping him.

It's just one more reason why she's really begun to wish they'd stayed in Narnia and never come to Tashbaan.

[elementalraven]

Narnia, any, training

[elementalraven]

Narnia, any, a household