Tom X Tord Sin Novels & Stories

but honestly the tension part always trips me up unless I focus on the specific dynamic they have in the source. It's not like a generic enemies-to-lovers template fits perfectly. The tension should feel brittle and sharp, because their whole foundation is built on this weird mix of betrayal, competition, and forced proximity. They're roommates who nearly destroyed each other. I usually let the setting do some work—a shared apartment after everything went down, or being stuck on some dumb mission together where they have to rely on one another. The real juice comes from writing around what they're not saying. Tord's ambition versus Tom's simmering resentment creates this invisible wall of things they'd never actually admit out loud.

Dialogue that's too direct kills it. Let them snipe at each other about petty roommate stuff while the actual conflict—the gun, the robot, the betrayal—just hangs there in the silence between lines. Physical descriptions help too; having one notice the other's habits, or a scar, or a change in behavior, but refusing to acknowledge it. The moment you have one of them confess feelings outright, you've basically ended the story, so the art is in stretching that 'will they, won't they' over the plot without making either character seem oblivious or out of character. I find readers respond best when the tension escalates through actions, not monologues—a hand almost touching, sharing a cigarette, one patching up the other's injury while muttering insults.

Weirdly, my memory of Tom and Tord fics is that they're almost all about invasions. And I don't mean that metaphorically. I'm not sure how it started, but half the plots hinge on Tord's army from 'The End' coming back, but this time he's got... mixed feelings about capturing Tom specifically. The other major route is the reverse: a post-canon redemption where Tord slinks back to the flat alone, half-dead and expecting a fight, and Tom has to decide whether to slam the door or patch him up. Both scenarios exploit that delicious push-pull between their inherent rivalry and the weird, grudging domesticity they had. Tord's a control freak with a god complex, Tom's a chaotic slob with a heart under all that sarcasm—the tension writes itself.

Also, the 'bodyguard' trope pops up a lot. Tord, now a powerful figure, 'requisitions' Tom as a personal guard, claiming it's for security while obviously enjoying having his old rival under his thumb. It's a power dynamic playground. You'll find a ton of hurt/comfort fics stemming from that, where one of them gets injured (usually Tord, because his plans backfire) and the other is forced into a caretaker role. It breaks down the walls in a way direct conversation never could in the show.

Honestly, the best ones I've read don't even involve the Red Army. They're just mundane AUs where that same aggressive energy is channeled into, like, rival bakery owners or competing architects. The core is always that explosive combination of irritation and fascination.

I feel like there's this huge push towards reimagining Tord as some secret softie pining for Tom, with the whole 'Enemies to Lovers' thing being the default blueprint. It's a bit overdone, honestly. The classic setup is Tord's robot army or 'the plan' causing a rift, then a forced proximity scenario—like getting trapped somewhere during a mission—leads to tense conversations and eventual vulnerability. A trope I'm less fond of is the 'Amnesia AU' where Tord gets hurt and forgets his villainy, and Tom has to care for this confused, sweet version of him. It feels like a shortcut to erase his core traits.

Lately I've seen more fics playing with 'Bodyguard AU' or 'Mafia AU', which are fun but still hinge on that power imbalance and mutual irritation simmering into something else. The real niche ones that stick with me are the rare 'Role Reversal' stories, where Tom's the one with the dubious morals and Tord is the exasperated voice of reason. Those flip the dynamic in a way that feels fresh, even if the writing isn't always perfect.