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starlightvld.bsky.social
Starlight
@starlightvld.bsky.social
470 followers 440 following 1.5K posts
Fic Writer for VLD (mainly sheith ❤️🖤) & COD (mainly ghoap 🧼☠️). Enjoys video games and being a recluse.
- autistic, older than dirt (30+), ace 🖤🩶🤍💜
PFP: @kibagib.bsky.social
AO3: ao3.org/users/Starlight_VLD
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starlightvld.bsky.social
My #sheith print came in today, and I'm just staring... it's so beautiful. Can't wait for my Mass Effect icon print to come in!
Print of Kiba's artwork called "You would be the one to rescue me" with Shiro and Keith under a constellation shaped like the black lion's head above them.
November 2, 2025 at 5:35 PM
starlightvld.bsky.social
Chapter 3 of "To Forge a Prince into a King" is up!

archiveofourown.org/works/686347...

#sheith #voltron
At the faint snap of a twig, time slowed. Keith's ears twitched. His eyes dilated. The sensation of the light breeze over his skin became a gale, the rustle of new leaves in the tree canopy became roaring thunder. His muscles coiled tightly, and a warning blared in his mind—a sensation he'd only experienced a few times before, most recently while standing in a room of nobles just before Sendak struck his father down. He'd ignored the feeling then. He would not make the same mistake twice. With the power of muscles honed by a lifetime of training, Keith launched himself at Shiro. They collided just as the sharp thwack of an arrow hitting the side of the wagon rent the air.
October 15, 2025 at 5:08 PM
starlightvld.bsky.social
For anyone interested, I shared a deleted scene from "not like before (when I was empty)" on Tumblr (no account needed to read): www.tumblr.com/starlightvld...

It's a convo between Price & Soap from the final chapter. Sadly, it didn't fit the flow of the chapter, but I still like it.

#ghoap
Price cocks his head, his gaze a bit too knowing for Soap's comfort. It's not like he's been shy about showing he cares for Ghost—the man is staying in Soap's flat during his recovery, after all. But he likes to think they've managed to keep things professional enough not to draw attention to the romantic side of their relationship. "Ghost has been texting me every hour asking when you'll be back," Price explains in a pointed tone. "The only reason I've had any peace during the last seven hours is because I could give him your ETA. Please, go put the man out of his misery." Soap huffs a laugh. So much for not drawing attention. As good as Ghost is at covert ops, he's apparently terrible at covert relationships.
October 4, 2025 at 3:26 PM
starlightvld.bsky.social
A little Soap POV from the last chapter of "not like before (when I was empty)" for WIP Wednesday:
#ghoap
He's been lying on the sandy outcropping for nearly two days, fighting the weather, the biting insects, and his own bad attitude. Of all the places he wants to be—at home, in bed, between Ghost's thighs... preferably in that order... and maybe add a long hot shower into the mix—the desert doesn't even rank. Rocks dig into his bones no matter how many times he readjusts or tries to swipe them out from under him, and he's left dreaming of a big body with layers of lax muscle to cushion his cheek, of gentle hands trembling as they skim over his body, of soft lips whispering softer words into his skin. That's been the most surprising thing of all. Since he fell hard and fast for the Ghost over the course of their mission to take down Hassan, none of his dreams have come close to capturing the true depth of Ghost's gentleness. Under that hard shell mask, Simon Riley is a marshmallow. And Soap loves it. Or maybe he just loves knowing he's the only one who gets to see it.
September 10, 2025 at 7:47 PM
starlightvld.bsky.social
TO FORGE A PRINCE INTO A KING
archiveofourown.org/works/68634791

Rated M • Prince Keith / Blacksmith Shiro AU (Kingforger AU) • Medieval setting • Established relationship • Forbidden love • Shiro leaves everything behind to help Keith regain his throne

#sheith #voltron #OGStarlight
To Forge a Prince into a King by Starlight_VLD Sheith / Rated M The story of a sword, a horse, a would-be king... and the blacksmith who loves him. (gift fic for Insomnikat) Rating: Mature Archive Warning: No Archive Warnings Apply Category: M/M Fandom: Voltron: Legendary Defender Relationship: Keith/Shiro (Voltron) Characters: Keith (Voltron)Shiro (Voltron) Additional Tags: Forbidden Love, Established Relationship, Devotion, Loyalty, Taking back a kingdom, the rest of the gang will arrive in time, Prince Keith, Blacksmith Shiro, Angst with a Happy Ending, Keith saves Shiro, shiro saves keith, Keith and Shiro save each other, gratuitous use of horses as analogs for lions Language: English Series: Part 13 of VLD Sheith Fics, Part 2 of Kingforger AU Published: 2025-08-03 Words: 4,157 Chapters: 1/? To Forge a Prince into King Starlight_VLD Summary: When Duke Sendak instigates a bloody coup in the kingdom of Terrene, murdering the king and presumably the queen, Prince Keith flees to the only person he still trusts—the city's blacksmith and his personal friend, Shiro. As the two embark on a dangerous journey to gather an army of their own and retake Keith's throne, Shiro gives Keith the tools he needs to succeed—a new sword, a recalcitrant horse... and the growing confidence to be the ruler Shiro knows he can be.
August 4, 2025 at 10:43 PM
starlightvld.bsky.social
not like before (when I was empty)
archiveofourown.org/works/68339991

COD Soap/Ghost • Rated M • 5+1 of falling asleep on each other, minor angst, softness, humor, getting together

for @frogdisaster.bsky.social
#soapghost #ghostsoap #ghoap #callofduty #OGStarlight
Not like before (when I was empty) by StarlightVLD (gift fic for DisasterFrog) ghostsoap/soapghost Rated M 5+1: Five times Soap fell asleep on Ghost, and one time Ghost relaxed enough to return the favor. not like before (when I was empty) by Starlight_VLD for DisasterFrog Rating: Mature Archive Warning: No Archive Warnings Apply Category: M/M Fandoms: Call of Duty (Video Games) Tags No Archive Warnings Apply, John "Soap" MacTavish/Simon "Ghost" Riley, John "Soap" MacTavish, Simon "Ghost" Riley, John Price (Call of Duty), Kyle "Gaz" Garrick, Pining, Mutual Pining, Idiots in Love, Angst and Feels, Fluff and Angst, Simon "Ghost" Riley is Bad At Feelings, Simon "Ghost" Riley Loves John "Soap" MacTavish, John "Soap" MacTavish Loves Simon "Ghost" Riley, I am here once again offering you an emotionally constipated Ghost, Simon "Ghost" Riley Backstory, Touch-Averse Simon "Ghost" Riley, Touch-Starved Simon "Ghost" Riley, he's multifaceted like that, Literal Sleeping Together, Non-Sexual Intimacy, Implied Sexual Content, John "Soap" MacTavish is a Menace, Simon "Ghost" Riley is Trying His Best, Getting Together, Happy Ending Language: English
July 30, 2025 at 9:49 PM
starlightvld.bsky.social
Another WIP Wednesday for my 5+1 COD gift fic for frogdisaster! Only the 5 and a +1 to go!
#soapghost #ghostsoap #ghoap
The first moment they have a bit of downtime in the safe house—the two of them, alone for the first time in weeks—Soap sprawls out on his back, head pressed into Ghost's thigh like he owns it. Ghost doesn't freeze this time, but his heart thuds heavy in his chest as if he's just run a marathon. A glint in the blue of Soap's eyes catches Ghost's attention—despite his wide grin, Soap is bracing himself yet again. Waiting for Ghost to shove him away. He sets his hand to Soap's shoulder, intent on doing just that. Instead, it remains there, heavy and unmoving. He stares at the offending appendage as if it doesn't belong to him. His palm burns where it touches Soap. The play of muscle under his fingers sends a flutter through his gut. The glint in Soap's eye fades, and his smile softens. Soap falls asleep as Ghost keeps watch.
July 16, 2025 at 5:24 PM
starlightvld.bsky.social
Fucking sucks. This was a fantastic WIP, too. The entire user account was deleted. I hope they post it again someday, but this is why I always put the fic name and author in my bookmarks now. I want to know the name of the deleted fic that's haunting me so I can cry specifically about that fic.
July 9, 2025 at 2:51 PM
starlightvld.bsky.social
If you want everything to be on the same level, use the same Header for all of them. So all your chapter titles would be Header 1, like in my example here. You would only use the other numbers of headers if you have something that goes "under" it. Think of it like outlining a paper.
An example of a Google Doc with Header 1 applied to the chapter titles in order to make the clickable outline.
June 27, 2025 at 1:52 AM
starlightvld.bsky.social
Sheith WIP Wed! This is for my Tumblr giveaway fic winner, who requested an extension of the story begun in Intertwined, a Prince/Blacksmith AU - which they brilliantly dubbed the Kingforger AU. (archiveofourown.org/works/59929843) #sheith
For the first time since the horrific day before yesterday when his whole world tumbled down around him, Keith laughed. The mare hopped and zig-zagged as she galloped, and the whole time, as he held on for dear life, he talked to her in the same calm tone. Miraculously, after a few loops around the meadow, she calmed. He tentatively sat up from where he'd plastered himself to her back. Shiro laughed and called out, "You're a regular horse charmer!" "Maybe. We'll see if it lasts. Especially with a second rider." Shiro's eyes widened. "Me?" "Who else is going to save Black? You know that stubborn horse won't come to me." Shiro's answering grin was the most beautiful thing Keith had ever seen.
June 12, 2025 at 1:43 AM
starlightvld.bsky.social
First up, a WIP Wed (and proof of life) from 5+1 fic called "not like before (when I was empty)" - my gift fic for @frogdisaster.bsky.social.
#ghostsoap #soapghost
It's still too quiet. A creaking sound fills the cab, and it takes a moment to realize he's got the steering wheel in a death grip, his leather gloves grating against worn plastic. He tries to relax his fingers, but the cold and the phantoms of his past fight him. It feels like a culmination—an inevitability—when Soap's rumbling brogue finally breaks the silence. "Ever been betrayed like this before, Lt?" A sudden rush of blood and a thundering heartbeat in Ghost's ears drowns out the hum of the engine, the crackle of tires over worn asphalt, the patter of rain against glass and metal. He pushes back into the cushioned bench seat, focuses on the cool air from the broken-out window buffeting his drenched clothes and stealing his body heat, and reminds himself there are no iron bars keeping him contained. His hands are clean under his gloves, not covered in dirt and splinters and the viscera of a former ally. A traitor. A betrayer. The scent of petrichor and damp vinyl wafts through his mask instead of sickly panic and decay. He swallows and lifts a shoulder in a half shrug. "I've had worse."
June 11, 2025 at 11:56 PM
starlightvld.bsky.social
😈😈😈
Kudos: 666
April 28, 2025 at 1:55 AM
starlightvld.bsky.social
A little WIP Wednesday of a Christmas-themed #ghoap fic I've been working on since last November. It was supposed to be a one-shot but is now close to 13k words. Maybe I'll finish it by this coming Christmas? 😅
April 16, 2025 at 6:58 PM
starlightvld.bsky.social
As a giant THANK YOU to my followers for milestones both here and on Tumblr, I'm running a fic giveaway through 4/13!

Rules:
1. Must be following me
2. Must repost and comment on this post

Primarily for #ghoap #faralex or #sheith. See image (or alt text) for details or keep reading the thread. ⬇️
Starlight’s follower milestone giveaway - open through April 13 Enter for a chance to win a fic with a story idea and pairing of your choice!* Rules: 1) Must be following me 2) Must reblog and comment on this post * Restrictions: - One entry per person per platform. If following on both Tumblr and Bluesky, you may enter both giveaways separately. - SFW only, up to a Mature rating on sexual content, violence, gore, etc. - Pairings I will write include ghoap, faralex, and sheith. Winner may also suggest a different pairing, which I will accommodate if possible. No reader or OC fics.
April 6, 2025 at 4:47 PM
starlightvld.bsky.social
And that's a wrap! The epilogue of Bait & Switch is up!

Read it here: archiveofourown.org/works/630048...

Or start from the beginning with the link in the quoted post below. ⬇️⬇️⬇️

#ghostsoap #soapghost #ghoap
The gentle mouth and hands that worship him later that night reaffirm their connection—the undeniable bond requiring no explanation and evoking weighted words like soulmates and destiny. Soap feels a bit silly even thinking them, but when Ghost looks at him like this, all devotion and desperation, it leaves him breathless, unsure what other words could suffice to describe the vastness of what he feels.
April 1, 2025 at 2:08 AM
starlightvld.bsky.social
I'm laughing and kicking my feet: For the first time, I have more comments on a fic than kudos (and yes, half of them are my own replies, but the sentiment stands). I love all you commenters SO MUCH. Seriously. You make the struggle worthwhile. 😍😍😍
Chapters: 10/11 Comments: 179 Kudos: 178
March 27, 2025 at 4:12 PM
starlightvld.bsky.social
Chapter 10/11 of Bait and Switch is up!
(As are chapters 8 and 9... I keep forgetting to post about it.😅) If you were waiting for the happy resolution, here it is!
archiveofourown.org/works/630048...
(or see quoted post to start from the beginning)

#ghostsoap
Ghost slows his approach, but he doesn't stop until he can reach out and press a hand to Johnny's chest. "You with me, Johnny?" "Always." It sounds like an automatic reply, but when Johnny lifts his head and turns toward him, eyes overflowing with tears, there's no distance or haze clouding his gaze. Ghost mutes his comms. Johnny does the same before reaching under his chin to unlatch his helmet and pull it off. It falls from his hand, the clatter loud without the helo or gunfire to cover the noise.  "It's over," Johnny gasps, his voice little more than an incredulous whisper.
March 25, 2025 at 3:09 AM
starlightvld.bsky.social
RIGHT??? 🤣 They just needed a second (or third or fourth) chance!
March 23, 2025 at 8:23 PM
starlightvld.bsky.social
"Simon sits up facing him and gently takes the hand not holding the papers. He presses a kiss to scarred knuckles..."

- Broken Bones and Shattered Hearts, ch. 19/19, MWIII fix it, art by the amazing @kibagib.bsky.social

#ghostsoap #soapghost #ghoap

Fic link: archiveofourown.org/works/52536466
Simon reaches over to pull a sheaf of papers from the bag sitting beside the bed. He hands them to John, who sits up against the headboard and begins reading. He makes it as far as the document title before he shoots a wide-eyed look at Simon. "Is this a joke?" "No joke, Johnny. Cross my 'eart." John gapes at him for a full five seconds before bursting into a stuttering mess. "B-but... I didnae think... D'ye really want... Are ye sure?" Simon sits up facing him and gently takes the hand not holding the papers. He presses a kiss to scarred knuckles, and when he looks up, his expression is as serious as John's ever seen it. "We agreed to say traditional vows because I didn't wanna say personal ones in front of everyone. But if I wrote my own, they'd go something like this: I only stayed in the military so long because I thought that's all I'd ever be good for. Didn't have friends. Didn't want a family outside of the one I lost. I was an asset. A weapon. But then I met you, and Johnny... you changed everythin'."
March 20, 2025 at 3:02 AM
starlightvld.bsky.social
I'm glad I get to do one final WIP Wednesday for BBSH. ❤️💞
Farah, Alex, Nikolai, Laswell and her wife Sophia are seated at the table as well — a security nightmare if anyone ever found out so many 141 operators and allies were attending the same civilian event at once.
March 19, 2025 at 10:05 PM
starlightvld.bsky.social
Chapter 7 of "Bait and Switch" is up: archiveofourown.org/works/630048...

Or start at the beginning: archiveofourown.org/works/63004804

#ghostsoap #soapghost #ghoap - rated M, post canon, established relationship, hurt/comfort
The touch shouldn't feel so mind-shattering. He's been sleeping in Ghost's arms for days and even kissed him. But something about the way Ghost's warm hand curls around his feels like the most significant thing to happen to him since Makarov stole him away from the 141 and broke him. The quiet settles like a layer of new snow. Even the voices in his head are, for once, blessedly silent. Soap turns his hand, slotting their fingers together, and the world slows to the faint beat of a pulse against his fingers and the rise and fall of Ghost's chest in his peripheral vision.
March 8, 2025 at 4:59 AM
starlightvld.bsky.social
Chapter 5 of Bait and Switch is up: archiveofourown.org/works/630048...

Or start at the beginning: archiveofourown.org/works/63004804

#ghostsoap #soapghost #ghoap - rated M, post canon, established relationship, hurt/comfort
"Is it real?" he gasps as his vision begins to darken, the whispers growing louder. "Are ye real? Please... please dinnae leave me, Simon." Arms tighten around him. Lips brush over his temple. "I'm here. I'm real. Breathe with me, Sergeant."
February 23, 2025 at 10:36 PM
starlightvld.bsky.social
They're saying *this guy* wasn't pretty???
February 23, 2025 at 3:56 AM
starlightvld.bsky.social
Chapters 3 & 4 are up!
All this time, all these years, has his Johnny been right there in front of him? Both of them trying to kill each other because of Makarov's sick game? Was Makarov laughing every time he sent Johnny to fight them? His stomach churns. It feels too cruel to be real. And yet when has his life ever been anything but cruel? Johnny was the one bright spot until that, too, was taken away. But maybe... maybe this is his chance.
February 21, 2025 at 1:03 AM
starlightvld.bsky.social
BAIT AND SWITCH
archiveofourown.org/works/63004804

soapghost, ghostsoap COD • Rated M for violence • Post canon, established relationship, hurt/comfort, heavy angst, based on the skin caption: "I wasn't in that tunnel."

#soapghost #ghostsoap #callofduty #OGStarlight
Banner graphic for Bait and Switch fic with a latex glove covered hand holding a syringe on a backdrop of a DNA spiral. All fic detail text is repeated in the text post. Rating: Mature Archive Warning: Graphic Depictions Of Violence Category: M/M Fandom: Call of Duty (Video Games) Relationship: John "Soap" MacTavish/Simon "Ghost" Riley Characters: Task Force 141 Ensemble, John "Soap" MacTavish, Simon "Ghost" Riley, John Price (Call of Duty), Kyle "Gaz" Garrick, Kate Laswell Additional Tags: Post-Canon Fix-It, Not Canon Compliant - Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III (2023), Game: Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III (2023) Spoilers, Post-Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III (2023), Established Relationship, Complicated Relationships, Renewing Relationship, Fake Character Death, No MCD, the 141 thinks Soap is dead but surprise!, Implied/Referenced Torture, Canon-Typical Violence, Aftermath of Torture, Non-Consensual Drug Use, Drug Withdrawal, Angst, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Heavy Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending Language: English Published: 2025-02-12 Words: 1,540 Chapters: 1/11 Bait and Switch by Starlight_VLD Summary: When Soap is abducted by Konni during the mission in Siberia and replaced by someone who looks and speaks just like him, Soap is left without hope of rescue, at the mercy of Makarov's sick plans. After all, the 141 doesn't know it's wasn't Soap with them in the Chunnel that fateful day. Years later, a showdown between Ghost and Makarov's pet—a seemingly inhuman soldier and perpetual thorn in the 141's side—reopens old wounds, and despite the bloody mess, the results might just give them all a chance to heal. With a side of revenge, of course.
February 12, 2025 at 9:19 PM