Introduction To The Flameborn Multiverse
[written in September 2023; new fic links updated periodically. I had an older one from 2022 but it's outdated and needed to be updated/replaced. also posted on my Dreamwidth.]
The Flameborn multiverse focuses on four souls bound together, finding their way to each other across different universes in different sets of circumstances.
In most of these universes, Maglor is still wandering the world thousands of years post-canon, pretending to be human to blend in and avoid problems. In most of these universes, Fëanor, Fingolfin and Finarfin reincarnate as mortal in the modern era - which I began to play with in 2019. [However, in Shades Of Silver-Gold/Keep You Like An Oath, Finarfin never dies and Fëanor and Fingolfin are re-embodied rather than reincarnated.] I have written fics where they reincarnate as human earlier in the 20th century and before the 20th century, and may play with other historical AUs in the future. Most of my multiverse works are set in the 21st century.
While some people have written Fëanor and his family in a modern Earth setting, my multiverse has Fëanor and his brothers reborn as human OCs who have some traits that carry over [e.g. Sören, who was Fëanor, is an artist] and commonly dream of their past lives, and sometimes figure out those dreams aren't just dreams and there's a reason why they encountered each other. We find out in some stories that Fingolfin and Finarfin agreed to be reincarnated first [so Fëanor is the youngest of the three this time] in order to protect Fëanor.
This is also rather [unintentionally] the opposite of most OC-centric Tolkien fic, where a modern girl falls into [canon-era] Middle-Earth.
Though the multiverse draws on elements of Tolkien's Legendarium, it is equally influenced by Stephen King's The Dark Tower and his concept of the ka-tet ["one made from many" or "a group of people summoned by ka"]; The Dark Tower also contains a multiverse.
The Flameborn multiverse is emphatically not connected to any other fanfic author's AUs in any way, save the work of my friends Detergent and SemperViridis. Detergent's OCs feature prominently in the universe Corn of Eternity, expanding the reincarnated House of Finwë and other Eldar.
In the early installments of the multiverse, I had the idea that the prophecy that Fëanor would be released from Mandos just before the Dagor Dagorath, meant there needed to be some sort of battle against Sauron and Morgoth; this is explicit in the Northern Lights universe and more subtle in the Learning To Fly universe.
But by 2021 I had tired enough of living in a real-life "end of days" dystopia between the pandemic, climate change catastrophes and the rise of fascism, so I stopped writing epic, sprawling multi-sequel universes about Fighting the Evil and instead began to focus on self-indulgent smutty comfort fics [standalones or two-parters] where the ka-tet get together in different configurations, and their love is enough for them to find their way to each other. [However, the Finwioni v. Angband theme still features in my ongoing universe Corn Of Eternity in a less serious, more "dark comedy" way, and in 2025+ my fic Unbreakable will have a good v. evil theme.]
What this means for you, the reader:
-Anything from Northern Lights and Learning To Fly is a big time commitment, as things will make more sense if you read the stories together, and while knowledge of the Silmarillion is not absolutely required to follow along, it may still provide context. Under the Rose, which was written in the same time period, reads more like o-fic even though Maglor is present.
-Most of my post-canon-era work from 2021 onward can be read fandom-blind, and some of it I consider o-fic [where Maglor doesn't appear and reincarnation doesn't explicitly come up, though you will still see subtle hints of who/what the guys were if you know what to look for].
Finally, in 2022 I began to shift focus from writing cis M/M [and occasional Omegaverse] to more emphasis on cis-on-trans M/M and T4T M/M. There is a distinct lack of transmasc M/M erotica that doesn't involve pregnancy kink, so I wanted to fill that void, which also has therapeutic purposes
Since I have over 200 works at present and it can be overwhelming to figure out where to begin, I've narrowed it down to a shorter list of standalone fics that I feel are a good way to get to know the guys and my writing style, and which also can be read fandom-blind [or are just o-fic] and have been well-received. All the fics linked below are explicit.
Sören/Anthony [Fëanor/Finarfin]
- We Two Boys, Together Clinging - In December 2007, an Alpha named Anthony doesn't want to ruin his family's Christmas in post-breakup depression, so he treats himself with a trip to Reykjavik. He meets a sexy bartender named Sören who just happens to be gay... and an Omega. Sören offers to give him a tour, but the beauty and magic of Iceland isn't the only thing Sören has to show him. 41.9k words, cis. 2021.
- Let Them Eat Cake - Anthony Hewlett-Johnson earned three Michelin stars by the time he was forty, has restaurants around the world, and is a celebrity chef with his own BBC show, Let Them Eat Cake. But he is alone, and lonely... and much to his dismay, one of his contestants is looking like a snacc. 35.9k words, cis. 2022.
- Just The Tip - As a blizzard starts, Anthony delivers pizzas to an unmated Omega preparing his heat nest. ...Pizza isn't all that gets delivered hot. 11.2k words, cis. 2022.
- C'est La Vie - After Sören, a trans man, gets rejected by yet another guy, his best friend Anthony, a fellow trans man, takes him up to a cabin in Maine for his birthday. Anthony is the one he really wants, and thinks his love isn't returned. He's about to get quite the birthday surprise... 11.7k words, T4T. 2022.
- Changing Colors - After Anthony discovers Sören's love interest isn't what he seems, he has to pick up the pieces of Sören's broken heart. But he's the one Sören's wanted all along... 21.9k words, T4T. 2023.
- As You Are - Prequel to OnlyMags, the tale of Anthony's transition journey and meeting Sören in Iceland. 86.9k words, T4T. 2023.
- Dorky Dancing - Anthony takes dance lessons from Sören in anticipation of his 25-year high school reunion. Cis on trans, 22k words. 2023.
- Healing Hands - In a world of hatred and heartache, Anthony and Sören become a refuge for each other. Cis on trans, 25k words. 2024.
- Starry Night - Anthony and Sören are about to celebrate their mutual transition anniversary by going on a camping trip together. Now that they're finally getting some alone time, it's the perfect opportunity to confess catching feelings. But will it make things weird? 20.3k words, T4T, 2024.
Sören/Nicholas [Fëanor/Fingolfin]
- Don't Threaten Me With A Good Time - In London, Nicolae Dooku, a barrister, accidentally discovers the Force sensitivity of a young artist named Sören Sigurðsson. They become unlikely friends, and on a trip they take together to visit Sören's family in Iceland, the friendship turns into something more, with an explosion of passion under the northern lights. But they come from two different generations and two different worlds and it's not an easy road to happiness. 141.1k words, cis. 2018.
- You Give Me Fever - On a bad day, Sören's path crosses with an older gentleman [Nicholas] who makes it a lot better. They quickly find some common ground, though they are in many ways also very different. Do they have a chance? T4T. 24.8k words. 2024.
Sören/Maglor [Fëanor/Maglor]
- Fumbling Towards Ecstasy - Sören Sigurðsson, an art professor in his early thirties, is on summer vacation, renting a room in a cottage in Sausalito, California. It turns out the other room is being rented by his colleague Mark Lauer, a music professor... an arrangement neither of them knew about at the time. They become friends... and then a bit more. But what kind of secrets is "Mark" hiding? Who and what is "Mark", really? Why does it seem that they were fated to find each other? And can they overcome the pain of their respective pasts to hang onto the promise of hope for the future? Part of the Under the Rose universe, but can be read as a standalone. 195.5k words, cis. 2019.
- Midnight Sun - In Reykjavik in the summer of 2009, an Omega named Sören crosses paths with Magni Fannarsson, a street musician, and an Alpha. They start a friendship, which smoulders into something deeper, and intense. But "Magni" is more than he appears... 36k words, cis. 2021-2022.
Sören/Anthony/Maglor [Fëanor/Finarfin/Maglor]
- OnlyMags - Anthony and Sören are an FTM trans couple who run a bookstore-gallery-coffee shop together in a small town in coastal Maine. They also have a discreet side hustle of making videos for OnlyFans. When their relationship with a down-on-his-luck, FTM customer deepens, they fear that he will reject them if he discovers their secret. But “Mark“ has secrets of his own... Aka that coffee shop/"Maglor (eventually) does OnlyFans" AU that nobody asked for. 190.6k words; my personal favorite, T4T4T. 2022.
- To The East And To The West - Sören celebrates his five-year transition anniversary by going on an epic road trip across the lower 48 United States [and through part of Canada into Alaska] with his two best friends, Anthony and Mark, who are two trans guys in a relationship. Sören is in love with both of them but doesn't want to ruin their friendship. Little does he know the feeling is mutual, and that the feelings "Mark" has for him aren't the only secret he's keeping. 74.8k words, T4T4T. 2023-2024.
Sören/Anthony/Nicholas [Fëanor/Finarfin/Fingolfin]
- The Boys Of Summer - Sören celebrates the three-year anniversary of his top surgery with his two best friends, Anthony and Nicholas, at Walden Pond in Concord, Massachusetts. He's in love with both of them, but assumes the feelings are not returned and is hoping to set them up with each other. But life is just full of surprises... 14.8k words, cis on trans. 2022.
Sören/Anthony/Nicholas/Maglor [Fëanor/Finarfin/Fingolfin/Maglor]
Other fics will be added to this list as I feel appropriate.
return to index