A/N: Here we are, the Baldur's Gate plot-bin I promised.

A place of amusing little tales that never made it off the cutting room floor.

Baldur's Bin sounds like a fitting name for it. Hope you enjoy the plot bunnies! It was either this, or write ten more stories. I'd rather not do that...

With long Covid still wracking my life, I find myself being a little, introspective these days. What was once a simple pastime meant for me and a few friends really grew and evolved over time. There are days when I look back on the last fifteen years here and I wonder if anyone will remember me; if I made an impact, despite never making a single cent on any of these stories. Some days were happier than others, and some stories I enjoyed writing WAY too much; to the point where I'd stay up all night working on them.

And of course, there are times when I look to the future and wonder what will become of things when I'm gone.

Of course, I try not to dwell on the latter overmuch; I'm still alive and still writing. In an ideal world, I'd like to keep doing so for as long as I can. But old age is catching up to me and these days, the world is filled with so much madness and death. Feels like everyone's lost their minds sometimes. Even before that, so many friends and fellow writers I once knew are gone, now. Will I still be here in twenty years? Ten? Five? Its a chilling thought. But for now, I'm still here, still writing.

So here we go. The fate of this story depends on you, the reader. Your feedback determines the fate of this tale, and many others.

I'm just a humble author trying to make his way in this wild world, one word at a time.

Time and feedback will determine if this remains a story. Simple as that.

In other words...its up to YOU, the reader. Do let me know~!

The sass is strong in this fragment. Its from a story that I never got around to publishing, i.e, if Naruto got himself trapped in Faerun with a tadpole stuck in his head.

Working title was "Put Some Dirt in Your Eye". We all know the Spiderman reference.

And speaking of which, the sass is strong in this chapter~!

Do let me know of you enjoy it!

"There as many stories as there are realms. Such is the way of fiction, I suppose.

And with each fresh retelling...the tales grow wilder still, spiraling into myth.

Why, I could tell you of a clever blond and githyanki I once knew...

~Gale of Waterdeep.

Chatterbox

"You talk entirely too often, boy."

That was it, the remark that set off the avalanche.

"And you complain just as much, Lae'zel. See the difference?"

"The only difference I see is the hole I'm about to drill between your eyes...

"Lae'zel! You wound me! And here I thought we were friends! The best buddies even!"

He heard the scrape of steel in the gloom, promising pain. "I'll do more than wound you, Kainyank!

"I have no idea what that means, but I'll take it as a compliment!

"Tsk'va! It was not one!"

Gale of Waterdeep watched the camp argument continue to unfold before him from his bedroll and shook his head with a bemused smile. He knew it wouldn't come to blows; not yet. And so he would watch, and he would wait, only intervening when blood would be shed.

What else could he do?

He certainly wasn't getting between these two...allies? Possibly. Rivals? Most certainly. Allies? Inconceivably.

Those two had been at one another's throat from the nearly moment they met- if likes repelled and opposites attracted, these two were certainly attracted to making trouble for one another.

Naruto was...a bit of an odd duck, all things considered. Their resident whiskered warrior commanded fantastic powers, destructive and restorative gifts that may very well rival those of the gods; and yet rather than use them in the service of said gods, or for grand deeds of heroism the world over, he seemed far more preoccupied with helping the two of them on their journey. Theirs was admittedly still something of a small party-surely they'd encounter others in due time- but he appreciated the kindness.

How powerful he must've been before getting a tadpole in his skull!

And then they had their Gith friend.

Lae'zel was, well...quite vocal.

Not quite cruel, not intentionally, but she was certainly straddling the line between being rude and being a bully. Fortunately for her, their whiskered friend gave as good as he got these days. And well that he did; Gale was patient to be sure, but even his patience had its limits. Had it been just him and Lae'zel, he was certain such patience would've abandoned him long ago.

Not so Naruto.

He seemed to delight in verbally sparring with her; not only did he give as good as he got, but he rose to the occasion, not with cruelty or barbarism, but dauntless charisma. The boy must have a silver tongue and nerves of steel; they were the only way he could've survived this long.

Having a tadpole shoved in your eye changes you, and not just for the impending ceremorphosis.

They were all of them weakened by the worm in their heads, all reacting differently.

Case in point, Gale found himself rather introspective.

Lae'zel masked her fear with anger and arrogance, fragile though they were.

Naruto? He'd become rather snarky. That, and a bit of a loot goblin, though one could hardly blame him for such.

Pity a certain Githyanki woman wouldn't -or perhaps simply refused to- channel her aggressive tendencies into such a fruitful practice.

But the boy didn't seem to mind that, he delighted in antagonizing her. As if it were all a game to him. As if he were probing her. Testing her.

Things were bound to come to a head sooner or later at this rate.

He wasn't blind to the possibilities; he'd seen the most bitter rivalries blossom before into brief bursts of passion, as spontaneous as they were short-lived. He very much doubted such would happen here, but he didn't deny that it would be terribly entertaining.

After all, he'd been proven wrong before.

For all his antics the boy was a gifted fighter, or perhaps a skilled rogue and a spellslinger. He couldn't be sure. There wasn't a hint of Weave in what he did, and yet it was almost as if he had some inner power within him, helping him despite being weakened-

"Tsk'va!"

Lae'zel's angry exclamation snapped him out of his doldrums and he looked up to find Naruto standing over her, having swept her feet.

Concerned, he sprang to his own, whispering a cantrip under his breath, just in case.

Forewarned was forearmed and all that...

But rather than finish her off -which would've been bad!- Naruto bounced backwards into the shadows. "Catch me if you can!"

Lae'zel bounded up after him with a snarl and gave chase into the gloom. "I will have your head for that!

Naruto's laughter echoed long and loud into the night, punctuated by another noise.

Well, well. Perhap's he'd been wrong after all.

Gale sighed and stoked the fire.

"Ah, young love...

A/N: Hope this made you smile.

Hope you enjoyed this; its rare that I write a dialogue heavy chapter. Now then, should this be moved to a weekly update? Yay or nay! Really need to hear from you this time.

Once more, the Embers rule remains. If folks don't like this story? Well...I'll not continue it. That's no joke, folks. I'm so busy these days; basically, I don't have time off. Not anymore. My free time is limited and as such, I can't afford to focus on something folks don't like. Reviews keep me writing in these times, and keep the daily updates flowing. Silence...silence only hurts. I hate having to beg for feedback, but without it...well, it feels like I'm not making an impact.

Right then, as ever, Reviews are love, Reviews are Life.

Reviews keep me safe from any and all strife.

So in the immortal words of Atlas...

...revieeeeew, would You Kindly?

Enjoy these humble previews.

As ever:

WARNING! WARNING! WARNING!

READ AT YOUR OWN RISK!

SPOILERS AHEAD!

(Previews)

"Druids? That's cute. I'm a sage. NOW STEP ASIDE."

"No."

"But its just one bite!"

You bit me yesterday! I was so damn woozy I walked into a tree."

Lae'zel snorted.

Naruto rounded on her. "I'm sorry, did I say something you find funny?!"

"Hardly. Your stupidity is contagious, it seems."

"Honestly, you two! Get a room!"

Gale coughed into a fist. "I quite agree."

"With her?!"

"I'd sooner fall on my sword!"

"SUMMONING."

A massive shadow fell over their foes.

Astarion looked up and balked. "Is that a bloody toad?!"

"I'm surrounded by idiots." Shadowheart palmed her face with a sigh. "How am I going to explain this to Lady Shar...

Naruto beamed a little and rolled over onto his back. "You're still smiling."

...what of it?"

EDIT: Hope these put a smile on your face and cheered you up!

May you have a lovely day filled with lots of luck

See you next time!

R&R~!

As ever: