#stripe writes

[tehstripe]

Read Frost and Frogs on Archive of Our Own:

"You're uh. Fancy."  Jade looks down at her dress, as though she's only just now noticing that she's wearing a strapless gown to go frog hunting in. He thinks she looks a bit sheepish when she looks back up at him, but he's not used to reading expressions on somebody who's this smiley yet. "Yeah! It's our first time meeting in person, right? I want to look nice!"  Dave suddenly feels vastly under-dressed in comparison. What was he thinking? He'd gone out and alchemized like five hundred different suits, and he chooses a long sleeved T-shirt to go and talk to Jade for the first time?  But no, that would have been overkill, right? He's pretty sure that getting dressed in a suit to go and hang out with a girl is probably like, a date thing. This isn't a date. This is casual. Cool. Chill. So fucking chill. Literally, on account of all the snow.  "Right. Well, you do. Look nice, I mean. Like- gives you a real space goddess kinda vibe, you know?" "Thanks! You look nice too. I really like your shirt!" 

These were my two pieces for the @homestuck-fanauthor-coalition's 4/13 Zine! The theme was Honoring the Past, and I wanted to get some more frog hunting in there. Love frog hunting. :)

Go check the rest of the zine out! There's a lot of great stuff in there in celebration of the 10th year of Homestuck being completed!

[tehstripe]

By Jade's estimation, it had been nearly twenty years since she'd been confined to this lonely tower as punishment. It could be hard to keep time when the days blended together; she had good systems now to make sure that she wasn't losing days here and there, but when she was little, she hadn't yet worked them out. She tried not to blame herself for that, since she'd only been five when she'd been placed here, but since she was the only one here, it was hard to find anybody else to put the blame on. Instead, she kept busy. If she kept busy, then there wasn't time for other things to catch up with her. If she kept busy, then she didn't have time to think about how badly she wanted to see the outside world. If she kept busy, she didn't lose her mind.  Her systems were intricate, her schedule timed down to almost the minute, so that she never had to sit and think about what to do next. 

Read Act 0: Chapter 1 of Reach Out and Touch the Sky on Archive of Our Own!

NEW LONGFIC TIME LETS GO!

This one is a fantasy AU with airships and magic and of course a lonely girl in a tower.

I'll be updating daily until April 13th, after which I'll slow down to weekly updates for the rest of Act 1. Please give it a read! I've been working hard on this one.

[tehstripe]

An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works

When Jade finds a bloodied and unconscious man lying in her backyard, her initial instinct is to call an ambulance. Something possesses her to go up to him first, though, just to be sure he's actually alive. She's relieved to see the steady rise and fall of his chest, though significantly less relieved to see that even under the fresh wounds, he's heavily scarred.  When his eyes snap open, the same brilliant red as his blood, she nearly screams.  "Don't- don't call- anyone-" he chokes out, trying to push himself off the ground, but failing. Jade winces at the thought of his injuries being exposed to the dirt like that; it can't be sanitary. "No hospitals." "You're going to bleed out."

Written for Day 4 of @davejadeweek for the prompt Good Dog!

This. Accidentally became a multi-chapter. I will post the other chapters sometime next week, hopefully. I just wanted to make sure I at least got this first part out day of, especially since there is a full moon tonight. (:

[tehstripe]

Dirk began to lead them down to the lower level of the ship again, but rather than turning for the engine this time, they went in the opposite direction, leading to a dining room that could comfortably sit about eight people. Rose was seated across from John, and in the middle there was a healthy helping of bread and what looked to be a hearty tomato soup. Jade's stomach growled. She knew how to make her own bread and her own soup, of course - she even made them out of homegrown ingredients! - but these looked especially good, and as they got close, they smelled even better. John looked up from his conversation and greeted them both with a big grin. "Oh, hey! I'm glad both of you guys came down. On this ship, we do complimentary breakfast, lunch, and dinner, all cooked up by yours truly." He pat his chest, looking awfully proud of himself. Rose scoffed. "Hardly complimentary, based on the cost of your services," Rose commented. "But we aren't in a position to complain."

Read Act 1: Chapter 1 of Reach Out and Touch the Sky on Archive of Our Own!

Happy 4/13! It's time for the official start of act 1 of the fic! This chapter is a bit of world + character building but I promise it's important set up. We're now on a weekly update schedule too!

[tehstripe]

From nearby, someone cleared their throat, and Rose and Dave stopped their argument and wheeled around. Rose's eyes flared with magical potential, and Dave's shoulders hunched in a way that made Jade think his wings might have flared out if it weren't for the cloak.  Standing there was a man with slicked back blonde hair, a pair of goggles pushed up over his forehead. He had sharp, angular features and a smattering of freckles across the bridge of his nose. "Hey," he said. "Overheard your conversation back at the information broker. Thought my friend and I might be able to help you out."

Read Act 0: Chapter 3 of Reach Out and Touch the Sky on Archive of Our Own!

The prologue for my new fantasy multi-chapter is now complete and posted! Act 1 starts TOMORROW!

In this chapter we get to meet Dirk and John, and the journey officially begins!

[tehstripe]

An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works

Sometimes, Dave feels like he just isn't good enough for Jade.  She's brilliant. The smartest person he's pretty sure he's ever known. They met at a recitation for one of the gen ed required science classes, and she'd immediately blown him away. He was surprised when he asked her for a study date and she'd said yes. He was even more surprised when she happily understood the double entendre of study date, and after an hour of going over thermodynamics together, they devolved into a make out session.  Dave reasons that he's not dumb. He got an A- in that science class, and even if she got an A+, it's not like it's that far off. He even beat her out in their writing seminar class, even if it was his A to her A-. But just because he isn't dumb doesn't put him even close to being on the same level as her. 

A late entry for Day 6 of @davejadeweek for the prompt Science+Art! Can a scientist and an artist really fall in love??? who can say.

[tehstripe]

An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works

"I just got fired." "What?" Jade frowns deeply, sitting up in bed on Monday morning after a surprise phone call from her boyfriend. Dave left the apartment about an hour ago, heading back to the daycare for his morning shift, even though she had wanted him to stay home. He went to the doctor on Saturday and was formally diagnosed with a broken rib and a concussion; she didn't want him exerting himself by running after little kids all day and making those worse. But he'd already missed two days of work, and he had been so panicked about having the money to eventually move out that he'd insisted on going. Apparently, he went for nothing. Jade takes a deep breath, trying to steady herself. She has to stay strong for Dave. He's been hanging on by such a thin thread these past few days, prone to spiraling over the slightest inconvenience. It was better over the weekend, now that he has his things back, but she knows he's not exactly in a state to handle more setbacks.

It's time for more DaveJade! Act 3 of my co-written series with @chronicangel drops TODAY with chapter 1!

Dave's gotten away from Bro, but he's not out of the woods yet. >:)

[tehstripe]

An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works

It was deep in the past that she met him. He was a bard, singing songs of the gods, and his tales were so engaging and funny that she found herself returning to his square every day just to hear the same ones again and again.  He noticed her, of course, and tilted his head to look at her directly about the fifth time she came to listen.  "See you comin' around pretty often, miss," he said in the old tongue that she knew intrinsically, just like she knew anything that came from her creations. "You like the stories?"  Jade beamed up at him. "I love them."

Day 1 fill for @davejadeweek! Filling both Birth and Death with a reincarnation fic.

This is very self-indulgent but I had a lot of fun writing it. If I had infinite time I'd turn this into a million word series. (I don't though so the 5k word fic is gonna have to do.)