Bonus Round 5: Myth & Lore

[referees]

Summer's a time for swapping stories around the campfire. With that in mind, this round draws inspiration from the stories humanity have told each other over the centuries.

This round is CLOSED as of 7PM on August 4 EDT. Late fills may be posted, but they will not receive points.

RULES

• This round does not have prompts. Instead, we ask you to draw inspiration from the wide pool of mythology, fantasy, folklore, and fable. An urban fantasy or supernatural AU? A re-imagining of your favorite folk tale? Characters swapping ghost stories or playing D&D? As long as your fill in some way incorporates the fantastical and/or supernatural, it's welcome here.
• Your fill still has to be about a ship from one of our nominated fandoms. What ships you create work for is up to you, though.
• To submit your fill, simply leave it as a comment as a reply to this post.
• Remember to follow the general bonus round rules, outlined here.

FORMAT

Bonus round shenanigans all happen in the comments below. Brand-new works only, please.

Required Work Minimums:

• 400 words (prose)
• 400px by 400px (art)
• 14 lines (poetry)

There is no max work cap.

Remember, this is a NO-PROMPT round. Format your fill comment in one of the following ways:

If FILLING:

If FILLING as a TEAM GRANDSTAND participant:

FILL: TEAM [YOUR SHIP], [RATING] Replace [YOUR SHIP] with the name of the team you belong to Write it exactly as it appears on the team roster (without brackets) or your team will not receive points Replace RATING with the rating of your fill (G - E) Place applicable major content tags and word count before your fill (when applicable) If no major content tags are applicable, make sure to state this-- even if including other additional tags NSFW FILLS: Please cross-link these fills and use clear tags in your comment. Written/text fills should be hosted at AO3 ONLY as a new, unchaptered work. Art/visual fills can be hosted anywhere. You may include a small safe-for-work preview of the fill in your comment. To place an image in your comment, use this code: <img src="LINK TO YOUR IMAGE" alt="DESCRIPTION OF YOUR IMAGE"/> Visual example

FILL: TEAM GRANDSTAND, [RATING] Replace RATING with the rating of your fill, G - E, as explained in the rules Place applicable major content tags and word count before the fill, where applicable If no major content tags are applicable, make sure to state this-- even if including other additional tags NSFW FILLS: Please cross-link these fills and use clear tags in your comment. Written/text fills should be hosted at AO3 ONLY as a new, unchaptered work. Art/visual fills can be hosted anywhere. You may include a small safe-for-work preview of your work in your comment. To place an image in your comment, use this code: <img src="LINK TO YOUR IMAGE" /> Visual example

Posts not using this format will be understood to be unofficial discussion posts, regardless of what they contain. They, like all comments in this community, are subject to the code of conduct.

SCORING

These numbers apply to your team as a whole, not each individual teammate. Make as many fills as you want!

For fills:

First 3 fills by any member of your team: 20 points each
Fills 4-10: 10 points each
Fills 11-20: 5 points each
Fills 21+: 2 points each

All scored content must be created new for this round.

Etc.

If you're hunting through the prompts looking for what to fill, a good trick is to view top-level comments only.

Have a question? Check The FAQ first. If you still need help, feel free to contact the mods. Happy fanworking!

Comments

FILL: TEAM Tachibana Makoto/Yamazaki Sousuke, G

[jinbeizaki]

Makoto Tachibana/Sousuke Yamazaki, Free!

No tags

Centaur!Sousuke helping Human!Makoto~

Word count: 927

“You’re… a horse?”

Makoto’s family and him would often go camping in the countryside but it was the first time he was lost and by himself in the forest. Or not so much alone as he came across this weird creature.

Despite the bottom waist being just like a horse, the upper part of his body was as a human. It seemed like he didn’t enjoy the comparison though…

“I am a centaur! Are all humans uneducated like you?”

This creature really looked pissed off and it only ended up frightening Makoto who started to walk away from him. Fear was now appearing as he finally realized this centaur could surely easily kill him if he wanted to.

“I am sorry… I didn’t know... I have never met one before.” Makoto tried to ease the situation with a smile although he knew it wouldn’t change the fact this centaur was pissed at him –or so it looked like.

“I would only forgive you because of your youth, boy.” Not that the centaur looked that much older but the green eyed boy wouldn’t dare to say this. “You are near my kingdom and if you dare to enter it I would not be as forgiving yet.”

It was only now that Makoto noticed the weapon on this centaur’s back. Despite his young age, was this creature already fighting for his kingdom’s safety. Even if he was just threatened, the human boy couldn’t help look up in admiration for the centaur. He looked so strong actually. He wasn’t wearing any clothes except for weird tribal kind of tattoo.

“I don’t mean any harm for your kingdom… sir?”

“Sousuke. My name’s Sousuke.” The centaur informs him before he added: “Why are you here then?”

“Actually I don’t know where I am. I got lost and separated from my parents.”

This situation sounded so familiar to the centaur reminding himself of his own youth when he could barely remember the way through those trees. But in those past years he had learnt by heart those paths. Nonetheless he could relate to this human boy, he truly didn’t mean any harm for his people thankfully.

“I will guide you. What’s your name?”

The offer taken aback Makoto who couldn’t believe it. A mystic creature was helping him! The smile he showed to the other was enough to shine the whole forest.

“Makoto! Tachibana Makoto. Thank you so much Sousuke-kun!”

The centaur ended up blinded by this glowing human, he looked so beautiful that he couldn’t help feeling this desire to kidnap him. Their people had been known for kidnapping their beloved since they were just a few of them reminding alive. But Sousuke preferred helping this boy rather than forcing him away from his family… He could still hope for his return after few years?

“Follow me, then.”

Throughout the travel in the countryside till the nearest village where Makoto could surely find his parents, the green eyes were curiously staring at the centaur. He was wondering if Sousuke was really half a horse and half a human. His mind was filled with stupid questions as well.

“I’m not going to let you ride me if this is what you are thinking. Riding a centaur is an intimate action only.”

“A—h no! This isn’t what—I was just curious about your…species?” Makoto mumbled, his face utterly red after the explicit words of Sousuke. Nonetheless the centaur was a bit more talkative after this. It seemed like he found quite a liking to tease the human.

As they were talking fondly to one another, they unfortunately reached the road leading to the village few meters away. Wait it was supposed to be fortunately, wasn’t it… Makoto had to be honest, he didn’t want to part from his new friend. It was even harder as this was surely their first and last meeting…

“Thank you, Sousuke-kun.” Despite those words, the human remained by his side. The centaur took off one of his necklace to place it on Makoto.

“This would protect you from getting lost, this is a lucky charm.”

“But what about you?”

“Don’t worry I have a lot more.” Sousuke smiled as he pointed to all the rest of his collars and other jewels on him. It’s true that even the tattoo seemed to have a purpose for the centaur. Makoto wanted to know more but it was time to go.

“Will I be able to see you again if I come in the forest?” He finally asked gathering his courage as his green eyes stared at the pendant he was holding.

“Don’t get lost on purpose just to see me, Makoto.” Sousuke replied full of concerns about this possibility but then when he realized the sad look inside the other he realized the implied question: Can I see you once more?

It seemed like they had both taken a liking to one another.

“Don’t force me to kidnap you.”

“Huh? K-Kidnap?”

The panicked face from Makoto was definitely better than his sad face. The centaur grinned before leaning forward to kiss the boy’s forehead.

“This is how we demonstrate our love.” Sousuke giggled afterwards as he couldn’t believe a human could blush this much.

“I… This— Use another more normal method!” Makoto tried to retort yet it seemed like the centaur’s laughing face and kiss were too much for his mind to function.

But this promise of a meeting in the future was enough for him to part with Sousuke. This wasn’t a farewell, this was a see you soon.