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Grilled Cheese is a product of Village Compute

Version devBuilt at: 2026-10-17 18:04:42 EDT

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Gelgus Pust unpainted

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“Mary!” Stede yelped as Mary’s eyes went wide as she looked back and forth between Doug and Stede. “I can explain!”

There was a sigh. A very familiar sigh, actually. The sort of sigh that had made a frequent appearance during the course of their marriage when Stede was doing something especially stupid.

“Yes, please explain why my husband is wearing a dog collar and you’re both naked,” Mary said and pinched the bridge of her nose. “And make it make sense.”

“Oh, well–” Stede glanced at Doug. “We’re uh, Ed has a friend named Fang that works with dogs and he’s offered to give us a free behavioral consult for um… for uh, the–”

“The peeing,” Doug said brightly.

“Yes, that,” Stede grumbled while Mary dropped her hand to smirk at him, her confused irritation turning towards amusement. She was always amused he’d been spending his night emptying his bladder all over Ed’s things. “And I can’t be two places at once, but Doug’s fur is quite light colored, of course.”

“Clearly,” Mary leaned against the doorway, eyes flicking down which made Stede remember he was naked. Not that he minded being naked, but it was a bit more awkward when he was standing next to her naked husband. He snagged his pants, pulling them on awkwardly.

“But my ear folds, and his doesn’t, so I changed so he could get some pics and now we’re trying to figure out how to fold his ear for the call.”

Mary’s brow furrowed. “Is Ed going to be on the call?”

“I… no?” Stede blinked a few times. “Why?”

“Then what does it matter? His friend hasn’t had any close contact.” Mary waved her hand at Doug. “Not that I’m for this insanity, but he won’t care if the ear is folded or not.”

“We’re going for a pup cup after and I get to ride in the car!” Doug said excitedly. “Stede’s going to let me stick my head out the window!”

“Oh Jesus wept,” Mary blinked a few times.

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2 pencil sketches of dinosaurs from Jurassic Park, drawn in a sort of chibi style: 1. T-Rex roaring while a banner that says "when dinosaurs ruled the earth" falls to the ground.
2. Sick triceratops laying on her side while Dr Grant listens to her breathing.

Stede saw the headline first: "An Open Door in Space"

He thought it might refer to a new method of travel between the various human outposts. He was on a station near Pluto now, post-divorce, while Mary and the kids (and Mary's new husband, Doug) were still near Neptune. Anything that sped up the journeys was welcome, especially because after Pluto, he was headed to Earth. His new job–now that he'd quit the Bonnet family conglomerate–took him all over the scattered human settlements.

Following the Beyaz invasion, humans had been transported far and wide. Nowadays, decades later, there was more freedom and more travel–and greater interest in human history.

Stede had found a job with Spriggs and Black, Entrepreneurs. Lucius and Pete were a husband-and-husband team that owned an art gallery and general store, and also hired out a printing press to certain groups. One of those was the collective of human historians, botanists, and other specialists who'd formed soon after the invasion, and whose researches Stede had kept up with as best he could from the sidelines while still under his father's thumb.

Now, as a lover of beauty, he sought art and artists across the solar system, making purchases for and inviting artists to the Spriggs and Black Gallery. He was free–he ought to appreciate all he'd gained by finally carving out a life for himself on his own terms, no longer shackled to an arranged marriage and a corrupt family legacy.

Sure, his nights might be lonely–

And maybe this odd headline could help him out in that regard.

Turned out "open door" was some sort of modern slang, a euphemism for new relationships.

It wasn't a news headline at all, but an ad.

For a kissing party.

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Stede woke up with a gasp, his heart in his throat and a sheen of fear-sweat cooling on his face as he kicked off his blankets. The memory of something dark and evil grasping at his throat was replaced with his own ragged breaths and the normal darkness of the bedroom as he stared up at the ceiling with his chest heaving. The nightmare had been so real, it always was, even when it wasn’t his nightmare. He closed his eyes as the fear continued to hammer on him. He heard Ed thrashing in his sleep, crying out and snarling to himself as he fought whatever demon lurked in recurring dreams.

“Fuck,” Stede whispered and rubbed a hand down his face, shifting on his side to look across the massive bed to where Ed was still trapped in his dream.

Six times in the last two weeks the mating bond had woken him up with terror nipping at his heels. He fumbled, trying to find a way to push the emotions away, but omegas were never taught how to shut out their mates, were they? Only alphas got to choose when, and if, they felt their omegas.

That bitter thought nearly made him roll back over to leave Ed to his nightmare, but the alpha made a soft choked sob before scrabbling at his throat. Stede swallowed, remembering the feel of hands at his throat, the helpless sensation of being hauled from the ground by a formless foe. He gritted his teeth and shifted in the bed, crawling across the distance between himself and his alpha.

He tried to tell himself it wasn’t care or concern when he brushed the alpha’s cheek, feeling damp sweat and tears. Stede didn’t even know this man whose freshly healed mark had bound them together, but he wasn’t a monster. And Stede needed his sleep, which wasn’t going to happen while their bond was wide open with terror leaking from the dream.

“Edward, wake up,” Stede tried to sound irritated, but to his horror a soft trill spilled into the words, designed to soothe and comfort. “Ed?”

“No…mmm…n-no,” Ed’s brows furrowed and he flailed again.

"C'mon lass, just this once. For old time's sake."

"I can't, Bryn. You know I can't."

Lossie stares down at the murky water dripping into the wooden bucket, wringing out a rag and trying to focus on her work. Her routine is the only thing she has, and she's not going to let Brynjolf of all people, interrupt that.

"The only one who thinks you can't is you, Lossie. I've always had complete faith in your capabilities."

She looks at him over the silvery rim of her glasses and snorts, not bothering to grace that with a proper response. They both know he's lying through his freakishly perfect teeth. Turning away, she moves on to the next table, scrubbing up... something sticky. Mead, probably. Hopefully.

"Lass, please. You're the only one who can get close to the target."

"What, can't charm your way into this one's pants?"

"I'm, eh... not his type. I know for a fact you are, though." He sounds like he really does know that for sure. Lossie stops scrubbing and spins around to look at Brynjolf, searching his face. He looks as unbothered as usual. The same can't be said for her.

"Bryn, are you out of your mind?! He's a regular, isn't he? That's why you know."

Brynjolf just smiles that easy smile he likes to pretend he means, and holds fast. Like he thinks if he just persists in her space that she will do what he wants. She steps closer and looks around to make sure nobody is in earshot.

"Haelga would kill me for stealing from a regular, Bryn! How could you even suggest this? I need this job, you know that."

Her voice is hushed, but urgent. She watches Brynjolf's face, hoping that her words will get through to him. She can't have him hanging around here, causing problems for her. Especially not if the reason he's hanging around is because he is trying to steal from one of the bunkhouse regulars. If Haelga found out, she'd be done for. She can't lose this job now, not when she's so close to her goal.

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A partly knit cowl in garter-in-the-round, with two balls of yarn beside it. The left ball is mostly used up Louisa Harding Amitola in Embrace - a merino silk blend in many colours including pinks teal, brown and purple, in a long colour-change - this is used to work the purl rounds. Next to it is Louisa Harding Pittura, a variegated merino bamboo blend, also using many short blips of colour in autumnal shades with occasional turquoise and lime green; this is used to work the knit rounds. The whole effect is of a bright autumnal melange.
The Pittura I bought to try out for a design and then found it had been discontinued, so it sat in my stash for a couple of year waiting for me to figure out what to do with it.
The Amitola is one of several scraps left over from the NightShift cowl and shawl; I hope to use them all up on this cowl.

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