round 3 overflow post

[starkmodistries.livejournal.com]

Round 3 Overflow Post

This post is for Round 3 fills only. We ask that when a round hits 8500 comments, fillers begin moving their fills to this post.

Format:
SUBJECT LINE -- Round #, short description of fic (ex: "Alex/Hank, lab partners")
--- Link to the prompt
--- Text of the prompt

--- Link to the fill
OR
--- Entire text of the fill

EXAMPLE:
Prompt: http://xmen-firstkink.livejournal.com/6437.html?thread=1038472#t2038174

Charles/Erik -- Charles is a bakery owner whose most frequent customer is Erik.

Fill: http://xmen-firstkink.livejournal.com/6437.html?thread=0139482#t4502942

Charles started off the morning the same way he always did...

Comments

Re: FILL: Everyday Love in Stockholm 124/?

[tahariel.livejournal.com]

Ahahaha, a little, but I love it. Stalk me all you like, I'll put some dinner outside on the step for you :D

As always, such a lovely, thoughtful comment. I'm a terrible commenter (I think a lot about stories but find it hard to articulate in comments, I'm better at discussing them) so is it weird to admit that I admire your commenting skills?

I'm so far down Erik's particular rabbit hole that I have Stockholm Syndrome myself, and one of the things I'm really convinced of is that everything Erik does is the best option he has for the situation he's in, regardless of how unhealthy it all is. It's an unhealthy situation all around, and it's not one he's manufactured himself - everything he does is to keep Charles safe. He can't let him go, because if he does Charles will die. So it's the lesser of two evils.

Erik is a man who has been burned so many times by so many people that he just cannot, cannot bring himself to trust anyone entirely, and it makes it so difficult for him because he really does love Charles, but he cannot, cannot quite convince himself that Charles won't change his mind, or leave him, or be doing what he does for some hidden motive. Every time Erik takes a step forward it's an exercise in bravery of its own kind, and then something will happen and he'll step right back quicker than anything, because he knows what happens if he's wrong.

Charles doesn't really understand that, yet. He's more concerned with making sure he himself is reacting of his own free will and not under the influence of his captivity. So they just keep missing each other. It's painful, but it's also the only way these two people the way I've written them can react to one another.