#starles

[starlightscarsyt]

Commissioned the amazing YamashitaShior2 on VGen for this adorable Starles Valentine's Day piece! ❤️ 💜

[gerec]

AU-gust 2023

9 & 10. Joker: Shipwrecked, Exiled

Pairing(s): Cherik, Starles Warnings: N/A

The sirens start blaring at the first direct hit, the computer warning of severe damage to the auxiliary engines. Erik curses as Azazel makes a mad sprint to the Engine room, while the rest of the crew try to keep their cool under heavy fire. The Genosha is used to having a little heat on its tail, as their dealings are often with the least savoury of the galaxy’s myriad inhabitants, but even they can concede that this is a lot, and that they might not be able fly or finesse their way out of this predicament.

It's not exactly common after all, to have half a planet’s armada after you, or specifically, after the long-lost Crown Prince of said planet hiding away on your ship.

The Westchester fleet hails them again, the automated voice of their flagship blaring through the comms, “Genosha, we have you surrounded. Surrender now. This is your last warning.”

“Erik,” Charles murmurs, looking out of the cockpit window at the dozen fighters keeping them boxed in on their current flight path. “Do as they say.”

“Fuck no,” Moira says, before Erik even has the chance to tell Charles to shut the hell up. “We’re not giving you up. You’re one of us, and we’re not going to let those bastards kill you.”

The rest of the motley crew shout similar sentiments, and Erik has never been prouder of the assortment of miscreants and misfits he’s come to call family. And Charles is more than just a crew member; he’s Erik’s, and Erik is his, and he is not going to let that thug Marko lay a finger on the stepson he exiled ten years ago.

“If they wanted to kill me, we’d be dead already,” Charles counters, which…none of them can really refute, given the sheer firepower aimed in their direction. “Give me up and they might just let the rest of you go.”

Erik rolls his eyes, and even Logan and Emma scoff at his words.

“You’re too trusting,” Logan grunts. “Ain’t no way they let us go once Marko gets his grubby hands on you, Your Highness.”

“He’s right,” Emma adds with a grimace, “I wouldn’t if I were in his place. Better to tie up all the loose ends.”

“You don’t know—”

Whatever Charles was going to say, none of them hear it, the ship suddenly spinning out of control, a precise hit sending them careening down into the barren moon below.

Erik regains consciousness sometime later, thankfully still on board his own ship, and – like the rest of his crew - still in one piece.

Unfortunately, that’s the extent of the good news, because a quick check of the Genosha’s vitals finds the entire starboard side smashed open, and the main engine damaged beyond repair. It’s a miracle that they’re all still alive, given the severity of the crash, and wonders if the enemy might have done something to help slow their descent. But that’s abruptly the least of his worries, because Charles is not right beside him, strapped into his chair….  

He stumbles out of the cockpit down the main hallway, then down the stairs and off the exit ramp. It immediately becomes clear that they’re inside the flagship’s massive docking bay, and that the Westchester forces have successfully captured their target. What’s not clear is where Charles has gone, and why there aren’t armed guards at the ready to escort them to the brig---

Then he looks up and sees Charles, a tiny figure in the distance, flanked on either side by row upon row of soldiers in Westchesterian armor. A man dressed in the heraldry of House Xavier steps through the blast doors – tall, blond and decidedly handsome – and smiles at a stunned Charles. Erik doesn’t understand what he’s seeing; not when the man goes down on one knee and bows his head, and not when the hundreds of soldiers all follow in kind, paying homage to the Crown Prince with the price on his head.

The rest of the crew catch up to Erik, just in time to hear Charles breathe, “Steve? Is it really you?” “Your Highness,” the man says, joy and relief abundantly clear in his voice. “I can’t believe I finally found you. After all this time.”

“I don’t understand. Kurt sent you---”

“No.” He watches as Charles closes the distance and pulls Steve to his feet. “Your stepfather is dead. You are the rightful heir to the throne of Westchester and I’ve come to bring you home.”

Charles shakes his head. “I can’t believe it. My friends? And Raven? Are they…”

“They’re alright. I promised you, remember? I swore I wouldn’t let any of them come to harm.”

In the two years they’ve known each other, Charles has rarely spoken of home, and shared very little of his life before his forced exile. It had never mattered before, what Erik didn’t know about Charles’ past, as they’d agreed to keep their own secrets even as they fell into bed. But now it seems the past would no longer stay buried, and the implications of it all – Marko’s death and Charles’ future as Westchester’s ruler – threaten to upend their fragile coexistence.    

Then, as the soldiers all rise and start chanting their Prince’s name, Steve pulls a teary Charles into his arms and seals their heartfelt reunion with a passionate kiss.

[mnemo-ink]

In Au-Gust, the 31th theme is to combine two previous AUs, and I’m making a game right now of imagining some prompts! I’ll probably publish some, 

BUT the reason I post this is that if you want to send me two AUs of the list and a pairing to see if I can come up with something in X-Men movies, you totally can! (I’ll reblog the list right after this)

[torpublishinggroup]

From Goodreads: The Year's Most Anticipated Science Fiction & Fantasy

Here there be monsters to slay and to love, final frontiers to conquer, and diabolical empires to topple. The real world has its charms, but this year's crop of science fiction and fantasy books offers irresistible escapism.

What are you looking forward to most?

[starlightscarsyt]

Commissioned the wonderful Snowfox / @yk_kitsune202 for this adorable Starles piece! It came so amazingly and so quickly too!

Please go and comm Snowfox on VGen, they are so awesome and so talented! 🩷

[gerec]

Au-gust 2022

1. Underwater 2. Artist’s Muse 3. Countryside 4. Dinosaurs

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5. Teachers

Pairing(s): Cherik, Xavierine, Cherigan, Starles Warnings: Past mpreg, total crack

This is a little snippet from an unfinished chapter from my fic Charles Xavier's Baby. You don't really need to have read it to understand this ficlet, though I personally think it would be funnier if you did. Just know that the story is inspired by Bridget Jones's Baby, and Charles got knocked up with twins from two different guys :D ---- They’re already halfway through a very nice roast beef dinner before it happens; the slow, dawning realization by both Erik and Logan of the girls’ intentions, inviting their art teacher over for an in-home visit. Charles pretends not to notice the mental alarm bells coming at him from two different directions, merely smiling at Mr. Rogers as he takes a sip of the man’s contribution to the meal; a very fine - and expensive - vintage Bordeaux. Mr. Rogers, Charles notes, seems to have excellent taste in French reds. “Mr. Rogers, you have such exquisite taste. This wine is absolutely delightful.” The man really is ridiculously handsome, and muscular to boot, sweet and well-mannered but with a delightfully dry wit. He’s exactly Charles’ type – and Charles ‘pre-twins’ would have been all over Steve Rogers like a slutty octopus – which only makes Laura and Lorna’s plan all the funnier to a slightly inebriated Charles. “Please call me Steve,” hot art teacher Steve says, as Erik’s mental nudges escalate to urgent pokes, and Logan looks like he’s minutes away from to sticking his claws into that broad, well-defined chest. “Thank you again for the invitation to dinner. It was an absolute delight having the girls in my art class this year.” He’s not surprised at all to hear that they’re well-behaved for him, since it seems they have very specific ideas for what role they want Mr. Rogers to play in all their lives. In a way that makes perfect sense to seven-year-olds just finishing their second year of school, they’ve decided they want a baby brother or sister, and – because they have different fathers – they obviously need to find another father for the new baby too. “You’re very welcome, Steve,” he says, and maybe, just maybe he bites his lips a little as he reaches over to refill the man’s wine glass. “You’re their favorite teacher by far. It’s always ‘Mr. Rogers is so smart’, or ‘Mr. Rogers is so good at painting’ with these two.” Both Lorna and Laura beam at him and then at Steve, their heads turning in perfect synch. Charles doesn’t have the heart to be too upset at their misguided matchmaking, though he’s not looking forward to the conversation they need to have about how they’re definitely not going to be getting a new sibling. (There is no way Charles is going to have another baby, after the insanity of getting impregnated by his ex and his new boyfriend in one pregnancy.) “Mr. Rogers, did you know Daddy is a teacher like you?” Lorna says, a conspiring Laura whispering in her ear. “He’s a Professor of Genetics at the university. And he’s rich and we have lots of expensive art at the house in Westchester. So you have lots in common.”

Steve, bless him, doesn’t see the evil terrors that the twins really are, lulled by their pretty smiles and the perfect manners they pull out whenever it’s convenient. “Oh, really? That’s wonderful. Do you have a favorite period or artist in your collection, Charles?” “Charles doesn’t know a damn thing about art,” Erik snaps rudely, in a way that would normally get him thrown out of Charles’ bed for a week. But handsome, fit, talented, artsy Mr. Rogers is driving him crazy with jealousy, in a way he hasn’t broadcast this loudly to Charles since he was fighting with Logan over the (at the time they thought just one) baby. “Any art he owns came with the house.” Logan, usually the one with the cooler head and more laid-back attitude, also seems rather threatened by the very idea that someone like Steve Rogers even exists. “What’s a guy like you doing teaching little kids art anyway?” he growls. “Logan—” “No, Charles, it’s fine,” Steve says affably, though there’s a glint of something in his eye now that makes him even more attractive. “After I retired from the army, I wanted to do something different; something that gave me a reason to get up in the morning again. And being around the kids, teaching them and watching them grow…it makes me happy and fulfilled like I haven’t felt in a long time.” ‘Pre-twins’ Charles would most definitely be sucking his face by now, which is both an indictment of his past self and weird proof that the girls have the same taste in men as their Daddy. He gazes with admiration at a smiling Steve, which solicits another wave of mental grievances being shouted in his direction. Stop flirting with him, Charles! Who invited this guy? Why is he even here? If you’re trying to get back at me for proposing again you are way out of line! Between the wine and Erik and Logan’s incessant complaints, it’s no wonder that Charles misses Lorna turning determinedly to Steve and promptly blowing the entire evening to smithereens. “Mr. Rogers,” she says, smiling her dimpled smile at an indulgent, if slightly puzzled Steve, “would you like to have a baby with Daddy?” Charles absolutely does not dump his entire glass of wine down the front of his shirt.

[gerec]

Au-gust 2022

Previous prompts here: AU-gust Challenge 2022

9. Coffee Shop

Pairing(s): Starles, past Cherik Warnings: Cherik as exes

This ficlet takes place about a year after my fic An End Comes to All Good Things which is a terribly angsty piece where Cherik starts out together and breaks up by the end. It's probably the only fic I've ever written where that happens (most of the time they're exes who get back together) and surprisingly it's one of my personal faves.

-----

At the time, leaving New York had been a rash if necessary decision, driven by the desperate need to put a literal ocean between himself and his failed relationship. In the year since that devastation and starting his new tenure at Oxford, Charles has slowly and painstakingly rebuilt his life anew, by making new friends and new routines and cutting ties with his past. Raven is the only one he can’t bear to stop speaking to completely, though their busy schedules have kept contact infrequent at best, with only one in-person visit so far when she flew over for the holidays.

The one thing he hasn’t done – still can’t quite bring himself to do – is to go out on a date, turning down fixups by his well-meaning colleagues or the occasional invitation from a new acquaintance. He’s in no big rush to put his heart on the line again, even if the risk of heartbreak is minor compared to what he’s already gone through with Erik.

(He doesn’t think about his ex quite so much anymore, with the pain and anger smoothing over time to a duller and more manageable ache.)

Still, he hasn’t met anyone he’s liked enough enough to share even a simple coffee with, though Moira is always quick to remind him he’s not being entirely honest with that assertion.

“You like that Steve Rogers that took your Intro to Genetics course,” she says, handing him his usual latte at their favorite coffee shop a few blocks from the university. The place has a great assortment and a lived-in feel that matches the general vibe of the city, and Charles much prefers it to the chain stores with far bigger selections. “He’s sweet, smart and handsome, and most importantly – age appropriate.”

Charles snorts. “He’s there to get a degree, Moira, not date his professor.”

“Well, the term’s over so you’re not his professor anymore,” she says, smirking at him over the rim of her coffee cup as Charles smiles and shakes his head. “You should ask him out!”

“It wouldn’t be right. He’s still a student.”

“He’s older than you!”

Chuckling, Charles takes a sip from his cup and nudges her playfully with his foot. “Yes, that’s an excellent reason to date someone; because he’s older.”

“I also said he’s smart and hot, Charles,” Moira teases, “and he seems like a kind and decent man. I understand he does volunteer work with veterans when he’s not getting a degree and teaching art classes at the local college.”

“Are you being paid to sing the man’s praises?” Charles asks, entirely amused by his friend’s knowledge and seeming interest in setting him up with Steve Rogers. “I had no idea you knew him so well.”

Grinning, Moira says, “We have some mutual friends and he comes highly recommended.”

“Oh my god I’m not buying a car, Moira,” he says, waving back at a few of his students as they drift by their table. “And I’m not ready to date. And even if I was ready to date, I wouldn’t want Steve Rogers to be my rebound when he could be an amazing husband and partner to someone much more deserving.”

It’s not what he meant to say; to reveal the part of him that still feels wounded and raw from what happened with Erik, and that he must have done something to drive him away. That if he’d been a better person and a better partner, maybe it wouldn’t have been so easy for Erik to leave him.

Moira frowns and reaches over to hold his hand. “Don’t do this. You are a wonderful man and an amazing friend and you deserve to have love in your life. And if it’s not Rogers than there’s someone else out there for you, I know there is, and I’m not going to sit here and let you wallow in self-pity.”

Charles laughs and kisses the back of Moira’s hand. “I’m alright, darling. Just got a little maudlin for a moment that’s all.”  

“Good, because ‘speak of the devil and he appears’,” she says, nudging him to look to the front of the shop where Steve is holding the door open for a little old lady. His stomach does a strange, unexpected little flip, which yes, he’ll admit has happened the last few times Charles has seen him on campus.

Maybe he’s not quite ready to date, he thinks, but perhaps having another friend in his life wouldn’t go amiss.