#how not to take a prophecy literally

[hollowwhisperings]

ASOIAF Prophecy Suberversion, a HotD Fix-It.

Viserys I has a dream that he & his cousin-wife, Aemma Arryn, will have a son together and that said son will be king. Aemma reminds Viserys that he is The King and that monarchy in Westeros is Inherited: their son would be a king because Viserys is the king.

Aemma relays the tale to their young daughter, Rhaenyra. Rhaenyra, who is wholly aware of how each new pregnancy endangers her mother's life (and that both of her grandmothers died too young, of pregnancy) proposes that she, Princess Rhaenyra, take up Crossdressing as a "hobby". When she is announced as crown princess, she presents herself in full armour and with her dragon at her side. She promises to be a good king, bullrushing over any confusion by her pointing out that Westeros has "always been rulee by Kings" and "Have You Met My Dragon, Syrax?". Rhaenyra is also very publically supported by the increasingly healthy Queen Aemma, the intimidating power couple that is Lord & Lady Velaryon, and the giddy King Viserys who scandalizes the court by announcing his intention to Abdicate his throne to his daughter when she is ready. The mixed confusion and relief of, 1) not having a disinterested king in charge, 2) Prince Daemon being moved down the succession, and, 3) the various Intelligent Appointments Rhaenyra('s support network and herself) proposes settles the Court to a state of hesitant excitement. All of this is aided by the early betrothing of Ser Laenor Velaryon to the crown princess: all dragons of Westeros once again tied to the crown.

Viserys happily abdicates his crown to his daughter as soon as she is ready, Rhaenyra's kingly education long seen to by Queen Aemma, the Princess Rhaenys, Lord Velaryon and even a reluctant Lord Otto. Both parents live to see their daughter crowned King of Westeros. Her prince-consort brings along his war veteran dragon, Seasmoke, and leaves the inheritance of High Tide to his sister, Laena (who, having successfully claimed Vhagar, is treated with Utmost Respect). Prior to their marriage, Lord Baratheon and several prominent Vale lords & ladies had been appointed to court so as to Loudly And Pointedly comment on the non-incestuous family ties the couple would bring together. The court is thusly prepared for King Rhaenyra's heirs distinctly Baratheon looks, aided by Lady Laena presenting dark haired children of her own (no one asks the rider of Vhagar who, exactly, fathered her children).

One notable appointment to King Rhaenyra's court was the Lady of Runestone, Rhea Royce, who commanded great respect within the Vale and soon within King's Landing also. She alternated her time between the Keep and Runestone, doing much to enlighten the court on the look of Valemen, masculine women, and the peace of a court sans Prince Daemon. So grateful was the court for Lady Royce thay she was gifted a Favour from her king: an anulment of marriage for lack of consumnation (a detail neglected in Prince Daemon's own efforts to render himself single). This gift further advanced Lady Royce's ability to act as Daemon-Bane and she soon earned a host of suitors, who had taken well to the Fashion of presenting oneself as both masculine and feminine (as inspired by their King, her prince-consort and, according to Renowned Septon Barth, dragons as a species).

The amitions of one Otto Hightower are curtailed by then-crown princess Rhaenyra's quickly appointing the Lady Alicent as her "Mistress of Court": with Rhaenyra as king and her husband a dragonriding knight, she reasoned, the "essential duties of a queen" would be neglected... unless Rhaenyra appointed a lady of such fine ettiquette and piety as Alicent to act "queenly" in Rhaenyra's stead. Alicent's duties included holding court with ladies and smallfolk, "ensuring proper dues to the Faith", seeing to the royal educations of Rhaenyra's heirs, acting as Rhaenyra's [PR manager]... confused but convinced that his daughter would be a queen in all but name, Otto begrudgingly lent Rhaenyra his support (that he knew he would otherwise be replaced as Hand by Princess Rhaenys was an added incentive).

Amidst her preparations for the Royal Marriage of Rhaenyra and Ser Laenor, Alicent wed the renowned knight, Ser Harwin Strong, commander of the City Watch (the term "goldcloaks" very thoroughly snuffed out as soon as possible, lest it catch on). It was an open secret at court that King Rhaenyra favoured Ser & Lady Strong over most everyone else, akin to her favouring of her good-sister. Ser Harwin was committed to reforming the city's protectors whilst Lady Alicent ensured that neither the smallfolk nor the faith were without voice in Rhaenyra's Court. Lady Laena... kept the largest, strongest dragon known occupied with scouting passage over the Narrow Sea and "adventure". There were Rumours of there being more than friendship between these most favoured by the King... but such is expected of kings, said the knights (lead so nobly by Sers Laenor and Joffrey) and the court ladies (so charmed by the attentiveness of their Mistress of Court and her ever-prompt mediations between factions). The smallfolk? Ser Strong's leadership of the City Watch was vastly preferable to Prince Daemon's tyranny, Lady Alicent ensured their concerns were never forgotten, Lady Laena's efforts kept seafaring safer than ever before... and it was far more fun to speculate over the mechanics of such relations, to know that whenever such gossip reached their king's ears she laughed in good humour rather than, say, employing the Watch to cut tongues and throats.

With Rhaenyra long established as her father's heir, her great popularity and her nigh-unanimous support (she might be a woman but a King is a King, the lords would say), Prince Daemon's ambitions were much curtailed. The combined forces of Queen Mother Aemma and Princess Rhaenys kept Prince Daemon too busy for scheming: "oh, Daemon, with Rhaenyra raising her children at the Keep, who will tend to the dragons of Dragonstone?", "oh no, Laena reported unrest at the Stepstones, surely the wielder of Dark Sister could help the cause?", "Daemon, your brother hasheard word of a surviving tome of Old Valyria, won't you see to its safe arrival?". The happiness evident in the retired King served the realm's efforts most of all, the restraints of rule enabling the brothers to spend more time together and rendering Daemon's outbursts for attention unnecessary.

(when Daemon tried to gift his very young niece priceless jewellery in an intimate fashion? Oh look, there's Proud Dad Viserys to clasp the necklace around his daughter's neck and ensure the WHOLE FAMILY is witness to such FAMILIAL devotion!)

(likewise, with Aemma Arryn alive and well, Otto Hightower initially made efforts to have his sons court their "future queen" - except she's to be their King, says Lord Corlys, and her marriage will return all dragons to the crown, says Prince Daemon)

Amazing, the differences possible when mothers live to supervise their offspring's childhood. Amazing, the ways of prophecy when an Outside Opinion is taken into consideration. Amazing, the problems solvable with good publicity.

[nightswatchdisbandmentera]

The way we discuss prophecy in fandom is genuinely fascinating. GRRM spends so much time showing how different characters have different interpretations of the same thing based on their own cultural contexts. He says that prophecy is tricky to navigate through multiple characters, showing that even the most careful practitioner can get almost everything wrong and fall victim to their own fallacies (see Mel). So tell me why the main takeaway for large parts of this fandom is “prophecy stupid, it doesn’t matter”. My brothers and sisters in R’hllor, GRRM didn’t invent multiple characters (three of whom are main POVs!!) who can see the future for this to be the conclusion. This is a FANTASY series. Please I’m begging, let us be serious 🥲

[mutalune]

I think one of the objectively funniest (in a tragedy-irony-way) things about Crowley is that to us the audience we are so very aware that he is so in love it makes him the stupidest idiot on the planet but like if you see his behavior from Aziraphale’s perspective????

Crowley, doing his damnedest to protect Aziraphale without letting Aziraphale know + following behind him all the time (looking at you, Prepping for The Bookshop Ball arc!!!!) literally just means that Aziraphale is off in his own little world doing his own little tasks like playing matchmaker and detective and newspaperman, with literally 0 idea that Crowley is gagging for it every day of the week

(hence: “you’re being silly!” Instead of him being like “oh dang crowley’s actually bothered” like when Crowley “plays it cool” and us as the audience is like “oh he’s faking!” Aziraphale is not the audience and it kinda works on him!!! He‘s busy with his detective work he doesn’t have time to notice that Crowley is being weird when Crowley’s always vague and kinda weird by default to him!!!)

like that’s comedy babes I’m sorry it’s so funny to me

RIP Crowley unfortunately you must learn to tolerate the mortifying ordeal of being known even if that means aziraphale stops thinking you’re cool and mysterious

[navree]

the thing is, most of my strong disdain about this isn't necessarily towards some of the politicians who made statements wanting biden to drop out, because at least some of them are making a calculation on what would help their reelection (joe manchin can choke tho along with people in safe seats like seth moulton", it's primarily a) the donor class b) some very obviously biased journos and c) honestly regular people who saw A bad performance and freaked the fuck out and fed into this frenzy for weeks in a way that now makes this entire party look childish and stupid and flaky.

but i'm all in on kamala so it's not gonna matter until december anyway, and even then i'm still gonna be a democrat until the day i die.

[torgawl]

never thought i'd see people try to argue or analyse wriothesley's murder in regards to his personality. i think people are missing the point. the situation has nothing to do with him and has everything to do with an extremely traumatic environment that made a small boy think the only solution so save himself and the people he cared about was to take the life of his abusers. it's not supposed to be rational, it wasn't premeditated, it wasn't about getting away with it. if you read his description of the murder you can see how out of it he was. his goal was to protect himself and his siblings and that's what he did. that's why he admitted to the crime so easily and why he is keen to associate the fortress as a rebirth place. he was just young, lost and traumatised and that's about it when it comes to the extension of it all.

[ima-ghost-art]

The Gods and demigods looking at the Seven and thinking *damn Percy Jason and Annabeth really kinda are the most important of the group right? Clearly they're the strongest and the teams leaders, they must have been the biggest threat to Gaia in the Titan war*

...

*Leo, Frank and Hazel who had their childhoods taken and ruined by gaia, (who is also responsible for multiple of their family deaths), bc she knew they were her biggest threat and the others were basically just back up since they couldnt kill her without them*

*jason is an iffy one bc he was controlled more by Hera than anything and piper doesnt really fit into either category*

[one-more-ghost]

i'm not sure if this is an opinion shared by others but the Unveiled mission you can do to get the new strand aspects is AMAZING. you sit in a room and listen to lore for the whole time and it's so good. they just kept dropping insane information and the voice acting for Chioma Esi was fantastic. me and my friend were freaking out the whole time

[officiallycake-blog]

Am I an unreasonable and self-centered pc? Or are my brothers argumentative for no good reason?

[ff2-soda-pop]

i feel like the stuff with lloyd and garmadon is really complicated and i looked in the tags for a couple minutes and i keep seeing people being like. making it like one extreme end of a situation or the other and tbh i dont like or get it-

[hollowwhisperings]

ASOIAF Prophecies As Punchlines:

cersei lannister learns she's to be "replaced" by someone "younger and more beautiful": cersei raises myrcella to be an intelligent politician & pointedly dotes on her. myrcella ends up as queen, the younger & more beautiful heir to her mother's legacy.

cersei learns a [younger sibling] will kill her by the neck: cersei reforms her attitudes to her brothers, pointedly doting on them; cersei has 3 kids and remembers to dote on the two younger siblings of the 3; cersei, long-reconciled with her brothers & well-loved by her children, retires to a castle in the riverlands. she dies mid-journey north, pain relief provided by a maester with elder siblings, in the region of westeros named "the neck".

aegon v & his kids learn that "the prince who was promised" is to be borne of the line of his grandkids aerys & rhaella. aegon v prevents his teenaged kids, jaehaerys & shaera, from wedding their own kids to each other while underaged & unwilling. aegon v finds nice, non-relative spouses for aerys and rhaella. when they are both of age & married, not to each other, THEIR kids (cousins) are tentatively betrothed: they are princes promised to each other, prophecy fulfilled.

rhaegar asks maester aemon about this "prince who was promised" prophecy he read in a book. maester aemon patiently explains to his great-grandnephew the mysticism of Contract Law & the importance not of "who" is promised but to "WHOM" he is promised. rhaegar dutifully doublechecks his debts & debtors to make sure any kids of his don't get promised to, say, an eldritch sea god or an uncle tree-wizard.

rhaegar learns his wife, elia, cannot have another pregnancy after their 2nd child's birth. rhaegar believes he must have three children: elia reminds rhaegar that adoption is a thing & that his parents are unlikely to survive to raise his kid brother forever. rhaegar takes an intetest im the wellbeing of his mother, "adopting" viserys by making him his squire before taking his family from court to dragonstone. viserys grows up looking to his brother as a father figure, looked up to by his niece & nephew (who call him "brother"). elia & her children live, rhaegar has his "3 heads", no lords paramounts get murdered while protesting the royal kidnapping of their underage daughters.

dany learns she will have 3 great loves, equated with pyres. dany shrugs this very disturbing imagery off & goes about living her best life. on her deathbed, wrinkled & surrounded by adopted family, everyone retroactively checks off dany's prophecies to see how they ended up being fulfilled, knowing that prophecies happen regardless of personal intervention.

jaime has a dream about getting abandoned & then saved by brienne of tarth. jaime remembers tyrion describing myths of "green seers": jaime recalls his eyes are green & notices he is sitting on a tree stump. jaime resolves to ensure lady brienne has plentiful resources available to her, and thus him, & endeavors to endear himself to her (in his hour of need, brienne comes to his rescue: armed, armoured & with a medically trained maester. jaime never dies of exposure after getting lost in a snowstorm).

melissandre sees in her flames: azhor ahai reborn! melissandre starts drafting a List of interpretations alternate to "stabbing loved ones = get magic victory sword".

melissandre later reminds stannis of sexual innuendo & his being kin to 'that dragon mother girl': shireen, beloved daughter of stannis by his less-loved wife, successfully adopts daenerys into the family & gets to borrow one of her dragons to keep everyone warm for the winter. more people survive & no children are burned as hypothetical victory fuel.

[swinging-stars-from-satellites]

wish I was capable of articulating why I've been nonstop head in my hands about YJTV Bart and Jaime the last week or so but honestly I've got nothing. they're a lot and I dunno how to explain it. very important to me though

[fuckyeahisawthat]

There are so many places in the Villeneuve Dune adaptations where he just...takes all the narrative pieces that Frank Herbert laid out and subtly rearranges them into something that tells the story better--that creates dramatic tension where you need it, communicates the themes and message of the book more clearly, or corrects something in the text that contradicts or undermines what Herbert said he was trying to say.

The fedaykin are probably my favorite example of this. I just re-read a little part of the book and got smacked in the face with how different they are.

(under the cut for book spoilers and length)

The fedaykin in the book are Paul's personal followers, sort of his personal guard. They show up after his legend has already started growing (the word doesn't appear in the book until chapter 40) and they are people who have specifically dedicated themselves to fighting for him, and right from the moment they're introduced there is a kind of implied fanaticism to their militancy that's a bit uncomfortable to read. They're the most ardent believers in Paul's messianic status and willing to die for him. (They are also, as far as you can tell from the text, all men.)

In the book, as far as I can remember (I could be forgetting some small detail but I don't think so) there is no mention of armed resistance to colonialism on Arrakis before Paul shows up. As far as we know, he created it. ETA: Okay I actually went back and checked on this and while we hear about the Fremen being "a thorn in the side" of the Harkonnens and we know that they are good fighters, we don't see anything other than possibly one bit of industrial sabotage. The book is very clear that the organized military force we see in the second half was armed and trained by Paul. This is exacerbated by the two-year time jump in the book, which means we never see how Paul goes from being a newly deposed ex-colonial overlord running for his life to someone who has his own private militia of people ready to give their lives for him.

The movie completely flips all these dynamics on their head in ways that add up to a radical change in meaning.

The fedaykin in the movie are an already-existing guerrilla resistance movement on Arrakis that formed long before Paul showed up. Literally the first thing we learn about the Fremen, less that two minutes into the first movie, is that they are fighting back against the colonization and exploitation of their home and have been for decades.

The movie fedaykin also start out being the most skeptical of the prophecy about Paul, which is a great choice from both a political and a character standpoint. Of course they're skeptical. If you're part of a small guerrilla force repeatedly going up against a much bigger and stronger imperial army...you have to believe in your own agency. You have to believe that it is possible to win, and that this tiny little chip in the armor of a giant terrifying military machine that you are making right now will make a difference in the end. These are the people who are directly on the front lines of resisting oppression. They are doing it with their own sweat, blood and ingenuity, and they are not about to wait around for some messiah who may never come.

From a character standpoint, this is really the best possible environment you could put Paul Atreides in if you want to keep him humble. He doesn't get any automatic respect handed to him due to title or birthright or religious belief. He has to prove himself--not as any kind of savior but as a good fighter and a reliable member of a collective political project. And he does. This is an environment that really draws out his best qualities. He's a skilled fighter; he's brave (sometimes recklessly so); he's intensely loyal to and protective of people he cares about. He is not too proud to learn from others and work hard in an egalitarian environment where he gets no special treatment or extra glory. The longer he spends with the fedaykin the more his allegiance shifts from Atreides to Fremen, and the more skeptical he himself becomes about the prophecy. This sets up the conflict with Jessica, which comes to a head before she leaves for the south. And his political sincerity--that he genuinely comes to believe that these people deserve liberation from all colonial forces and his only role should be to help where he can--is what makes the tragedy work. Because in the end we know he will betray all these values and become the exact thing he said he didn't want to be.

There's another layer of meaning to all this that I don't know if the filmmakers were even aware of. ETA: rescinding my doubt cause based on some of Villeneuve's other projects I'm pretty sure he could work it out. Given the time period (1960s) and Herbert's propensity for using Arabic or Arabic-inspired words for aspects of Fremen culture, it seems very likely that the made-up word fedaykin was taken from fedayeen, a real Arabic word that was frequently used untranslated in American news media at the time, usually to refer to Palestinian armed resistance groups.

Fedayeen is usually translated into English as fighter, guerrilla, militant or something similar. The translation of fedaykin that Herbert provides in Dune is "death commando"...which is a whole bucket of yikes in my opinion, but it's not entirely absurd if we're assuming that this fake word and the real word fedayeen function in the same way. A more literal translation of fedayeen is "self-sacrificer," as in willing, intentional self-sacrifice for a political cause, up to and including sacrificing your life.

If you apply this logic to Dune, it means that Villeneuve has actually shifted the meaning of this word in-universe, from fighters who are willing to sacrifice themselves for Paul to fighters who are willing to sacrifice themselves for their people. And the fedaykin are no longer a group created for Paul but a group that Paul counts himself as part of, one member among equals. Which is just WILDLY different from what's in the book. And so much better in my opinion.

[get-along-little-khornedoggie]

So the thing about c!Technoblade (I say, as if there is only one thing) but one thing about him that always sticks with me is the choice of his codename in the Syndicate.

Because at first glance, Protesilaus was the first bloodthirsty stab-happy warrior off the boat in the Trojan War, eager for battle, unheeding of death, which is one way to view c!Techno's character (how many times did characters view him as a resource or a weapon before or even after Doomsday, where he was literally screaming, "I'M A PERSON!").

And at second glance, he’s a willing martyr, who knew about the prophecy that the first man to land at Troy would be the first to die, and would rather it was him than his friends, which is another way to view him, one that seems closer to who he actually is ("leave Phil alone, just take me!", anyone?).

But c!Technoblade chose his name without ever abandoning his catchphrase of "Technoblade never dies", which is what sticks with me -- because he didn't just state that he'd die for his friends and leave it at that. He promised to protect them and to live for them.

Protesilaus is destined to be the first of his comrades to die by immovable fate, but also Technoblade never dies, which means that none of his comrades will, either.

He made it a promise. "I won’t die, therefore the gods will have no choice but to let all my friends live."

By something as simple as choosing a name, c!Technoblade (who for months was wary of identifying who his friends even were, especially after what the Butcher Army did to Philza, whose only crime was being his friend) told everyone in the Syndicate that if harm came to them, it would be because he was already dead, and that he never intended to let either of those things happen.

[devouringyourson]

the whole orpheus eurydice kaos controversy is so stupid and indicative of this websites inability to appreciate nuance like what do you mean it's sacrilege to interpret the myth that way when the literal point of the myth was that love wasn't enough (or that it was too much) it's not a big wonderful perfect romance what are you all on about. it's a perfectly reasonabl and frankly interesting interpretation to wonder if eurydice actually felt the same, to question the levels of trust in that relationship. also it's not as clear cut as some are making out. eurydice isn't a bitch for not loving him back and orpheus also isn't boiled down to be a controlling asshole (which would have been a easy characterisation to make) stop generalising and simiplyfing everything!! he loves her so much he damns her to a coinless afterlife and his guilt on this one selfish mistake takes him further into the afterlife than any human has gone before!! this misinterpretation of the journey as purely true love's power is a key theme of the show itself. Dionysus believe his music and thinks he's doing it all for 'true love' but he fails the first test of the fates. There's so many other factors and prophecy at play. The narrative itself plays with the idea of heroic journeys and how you view that story. Fundamentally though, this Orpheus is still a hero of greek proportions he still does manage to save her. but he doesn't get her back!! do you understand what a fun and clever interpretation that is??? stop being boring and getting angry that it doesn't fit with your own incredible simple interpretation of heavily debated and ever changing ancient mythology

[jinjeriffic]

DCxDP Prophecy Universe Part 2

Part 1

Damian glared at the envelope. He and Father were in the process of analysing the letter for any signs of toxins, explosives or other traps. Obviously he wasn’t fool enough to open a missive from a questionable source without taking precautions. So far, all their scans had come up empty. Literally. The letter was defying all their attempts at chemical or spectroscopic testing, x-ray and magnetic resonance scans were inconclusive, it defied all properties of ordinary matter. It was frustrating. It was vexing. He was blaming magic.

For all intents and purposes, the letter looked like ordinary paper, with an ordinary wax seal, bearing the initials CW. The looping handwriting addressing it to Damian was precise and neat. Swiping the surface of the letter for chemical traces yielded no results. When Damian had tried to cut off a corner of the paper for analysis it had resisted all attempts, including a laser and a diamond headed cutting tool. Damian’s only satisfaction was that when Father had grunted and taken over the task from Damian, he had no more success than his son. As if Damian didn’t know how to perform the standard array of tests!

It certainly didn’t help that his siblings wouldn’t stop their incessant chattering!

“I’m just saying, ghosts wouldn’t be the weirdest thing we’ve encountered, Red. I’m not sure it would even make my personal Top 5.”

It seemed gossip among heroes travelled faster than the speed of light.

“Really, Nightwing? Ghosts? It’s far more likely to be a meta with something to hide. Or a few screws loose.” Damian could practically hear the eyeroll in Drake’s voice “And since when do ghosts act as glorified mailmen?”

“I don’t know Red, since when do aliens pretend to be Kansas farmboys? C’mon, we deal with magic users all the time!”

“And lets not forget people coming back from the dead” Red Hood interjected over the open comm line.

“Magic is just science we don’t understand yet. Any sufficiently analysed magic becomes indistinguishable from science!”

“B, a little help here?”

“Hn” Father straightened up from his position at the lab table “Oracle, any progress on clearing up the footage from Robin’s mask?”

Grayson threw up his hands with a frustrated huff while Drake smirked.

“The program is almost finished rendering. Whatever scrambler they used did a real number on the video quality. I’m surprised the audio is as clear as it is.” Oracle replied.

“Hn. And the isotope tracer on the money?”

“Sorry B, no hits on the local sensors. Wherever the guy went it’s either outside Gotham or shielded somehow.” she said, mildly frustrated.

“Maybe it’s ghost magiiiiic” Drake sing-songed. Grayson lightly cuffed the back of his head, to which the former Robin responded with a firm shove. Their interaction quickly devolved into a childish tussle.

Damian gave an annoyed huff. “Don’t you two imbeciles have anything better to do?”

“Aww, we’re just here to look out for our baby brother!” Nightwing teased.

“Yeah, we gotta make sure your ghost encounter didn’t leave any lasting psychological damage!” Red Robin added.

Before Damian could retaliate for their needling, Oracle chimed in. “Uh, guys? You’re going to want to see this. Most of the footage was corrupted beyond repair, but I was able to pull some partial stills and, well…” she threw a handful of pictures up on the screen. There was artifacting marring them, but parts of the stranger were visible in each of them. Oracle magnified one that had a pretty good view of his face.

“Holy shit” Drake whispered.

Damian frowned. “What?”

“Dami, he looks like you. Just… older.” Grayson said softly.

“What are you talking about?” Damian snapped.

“Disregard the pale colouring for a second. The nose, the chin… he looks like you if you had a growth spurt,” Drake wrinkled his nose “and went through puberty.”

The commlines erupted into chaos. 

“Wait, wait, wait,” Spoiler exclaimed “are you telling me there’s an older version of Robin running around Gotham?!”

“Copy?” Batgirl inquired.

“Don’t tell me Talia cooked up Demon Brat 2.0!”

“Given that he looks older it’s more likely version 0.1 if anything,” Drake snarked, “though there’s the possibility of artificially accelerated growth rates…”

Damian had had enough. “Tt. You are ignoring the obvious - if this is some kind of supernatural entity it likely copied aspects of my appearance in an attempt to engender feelings of familiarity.” he said haughtily, pushing down the uncomfortable churning in his stomach. There was no way Mother would replace him with a cheap copy. She couldn’t! “Besides, the creature has obvious powers and neither of my bloodlines has any trace of the meta gene.”

“That’s ignoring the ghostly elephant in the room.” Grayson chimed in, “Maybe it’s a dead ancestor?”

Drake gave their older brother an annoyed look “Even a time travelling descendant from the future is more likely than that. And delivering a ‘prophecy’ to boot?”

Oracle pulled up an aged up picture of Damian next to the stranger’s, highlighting several reference points. “On closer inspection, there’s a couple of discrepancies. The cheekbones for one - Robin definitely takes after his mother, while our mystery meta looks more like… well… Robin’s grandmother on the paternal side.” she finished hesitantly. “B?”

They turned to look at Batman, who had remained silent during the whole exchange. If they hadn’t known him so well they would have thought him unaffected, but the tightening around his mouth betrayed his agitation.

“There’s no use in pointless speculation until we have more data to work from,” he growled, “Oracle, look for any reports of a meta matching the target. Since our regular methods have failed to yield results, I will contact the JLD about running tests on the letter.” He turned to Drake, “Red Robin, see what you can find on recent League activities. If this is another scheme by Ra’s or Talia we need to know about it.”

“The last thing we need is more demon spawn running around!” Red Hood groaned over the comms.

Damian was furious. This was absurd! To even indulge the possibility that that creature was in any way related to him was making him feel like he had swallowed battery acid. He was the Demon’s Heir! He was not replaceable! There was only one thing to do.

“Robin? Stop!”

He ignored his Father’s shout. He stomped over to the lab table, snatched up the envelope and broke the seal.

Nothing happened.

He unfolded the paper and saw the same handwriting that had been on the outside.

Brother of blood, brother of soul

Never buried but already mourned

In lightning and ice the scorned child returned

To strike down the Demon’s Head

With all that Death earned

Damian’s hand shook. He reread the lines over and over again, refusing to comprehend. He could feel his Father standing behind him, scrutinising the letter as well.

“Son…”

Suddenly, the paper burst into green flames, going up into smoke that dissipated unnaturally quickly.

Silence reigned for a few moments. Then…

“Well that was needlessly melodramatic” Nightwing remarked.

Part 3

[daydreaming-nerd]

The Prophecy (Lucien Vanserra x Rhys! Sister)/(Azriel x Rhys! Sister)?

Part 2,

Part 3 (Lucien's Version)

Part 3 ( Azriel's Version)

AN: I’ve had this idea for a while but after hearing “The Prophecy” on The Tortured Poets Department I was finally feeling inspired to write it. You guys have no idea how much that album is about to influence my writing. Also I have no idea how this is gonna end lol.

Summary: The only thing worse than having Azriel not know about the bond is watching him and Elain carry on like she doesn’t have a mate as well. Lucien and you have been long time friends but things change after one fateful starfall celebration. It’s not wrong if both of your mates don’t want you right? 

Warnings: smut, unrequited love, situationship, fluff, Lucien is literally and angel I love him sm, did not edit (I am tired)

Word count: 3734

“Please, I've been on my knees. Change the prophecy. Don't want money just someone who wants my company…”

I had known the youngest Vanserra for a while now. I can recall the first time I met him on a lovely day  in the spring court when I was visiting with my brother. The man was more than charming, his words nearly had me buckling at the knees. It was around the same time that I had found out that my brother's close friend Azriel was my mate.

I remember the bond snapping like it was yesterday. We were celebrating solstice in the Hewn City and my feet were nearly black and blue from the amount of drunk men stepping on them while dancing. I was about to ask my brother to take me home when Azriel stepped in and quite literally swept me off my feet. He let me stand on his toes and waltz around the room with him all night to ensure that he himself wouldn’t hurt my feet. At some point in the night the bond snapped and I had never been so happy. 

Azriel and I had been friends for over 100 years and I had secretly harbored feelings for him for at least 75 of them. To have my brother's best friend as my mate felt like fate. I didn’t tell him that night, something I have regretted for the last 400 years. 

Not long after that he rescued Mor and any sparks I thought he felt with me that night were long gone. From that day on all he did was pine for her. I couldn’t blame him, Mor was astonishingly beautiful. For a long time after he saved her I resented her, I felt like she had taken my mate from me. It wasn’t until I realized that she wanted nothing to do with the shadowsinger that my hatred for my cousin dissipated. It wasn’t her fault that Azriel was so smitten with her. It was my fault for not telling him, but now it had been so long since the bond snapped that it seemed weird to bring it up.  

So I sat dutifully by his side whenever  he needed someone to rant to about Mor. It practically ripped out my heart to  hear him talk about how in love with her he was. I was the only person he would open up to like that.  He would spend hours asking me for advice on how to woo her, and I grinned and bore it because, at the end of the day, I got to spend time with him.

I had been playing the girl best friend for hundreds of years. The moment I started to feel like he might be losing feelings for Mor in walked Elain. The beautiful sister of my brother's mate. What's worse? She seemed interested in Azriel as well. 

Elain was easy to hate. Not just for her flirtations with Azriel but for the way she treated Lucien, her mate. Lucien had so much love for the Archeron, and she waved him off without another thought. I might be able to understand her reluctance to accept the bond if Lucien was a brute of a male, but he wasn’t. He was soft, kind and easy on the eyes.

I found him tossing rocks into the Sidra one day, no doubt pining over how Elain had barley even acknowledged the flowers he picked for her. That’s when I told him about Azriel and I’s bond. From that moment on we spent a great deal of time together, ranting about our unaccepted mating bonds. Even though we spent most of the time bitching, there was happiness. More than I had felt in a while. 

Then starfall came…and everything changed. 

“You look far too stunning not to be walking in with a date,” Lucien drawled to me from the outside of the townhouse. 

I had spent all day getting ready for the annual party tonight. My dress was chosen specifically to catch Azriel’s attention, not that I felt like I would succeed. 

“Well finding a date is harder than you think, especially at this hour,” I laugh as I walk through the gate he opened for me. 

“Then indulge me,” he said. I turned to find him offering me an arm. 

“You want to be my date?” I laugh light heartedly, admittedly smitten by the autumn court male. 

“It’s a little last minute but I would be honored to walk into that room with you on my arm,” he said fondly. 

I smiled and shook my head at the male before looping my  arm in his and allowing him to lead me up the steps to the front door. 

“You know, you clean up pretty well Lu,” I cock an eyebrow bumping into him. 

“Thanks, your brother sets a pretty high standard as far as attire for this thing. Who knew he was such a fashionista?” Lucien grins before walking in the door arm and arm with me. I don’t even bother stifling the laugh I let out. 

The room nearly fell silent at our entrance. Sure Lucien and I were close and everyone knew, but they had never seen us like this. Even Az and Elain stopped their oh so intriguing conversation to ogle. I swore I saw anger flit across Elain’s eyes, like she was dead set on owning both Az and Lucien. 

Lucien and I spent the evening as wallflowers, doing our best to stay away from all the happy couples. We had even gotten to the point where we grabbed a bottle of wine off the table and brought it over to our couch, both of us tired of constantly getting up and down for refills. 

It wasn’t until Az and Elain not so subtly got up and walked onto the balcony that we decided we had tortured ourselves enough. We promptly grabbed the bottle of wine and waltzed out of the townhouse not even bothering to say goodbye. I supposed it was that exact bottle that did us in. 

I placed my hand on my apartment door, swaying slightly from the alcohol rushing to my head. Lucein’s hand found my hip, steadying me. While I assured him I would be fine to walk home alone, he insisted he came with me. 

“Thanks,” I laughed unlocking the door. 

“You’re welcome,” he chuckles, wobbling himself. 

“I had a really good time with you tonight,” I say, placing a hand on his chest to steady myself.

“I had a good time too,” he smiled. 

It wasn’t until that moment that I realized how close we were. Lucien looked down at me, the moonlight illuminating his face perfectly. The sudden tension between us was broken when he crashed his lips on mine. 

One thing led to another and the next thing I knew I was lying bare beneath him as he fucked me like his life depended on it. I didn’t realize how badly I needed to get laid until he was buried inside me. Needless to say I understood why people said the Autumn Court males have fire in their blood. 

That was a year ago and since then Lucien and I had decided to continue seeing each other in secret, both of us needing a way to release built up tension so to say. He often stayed the night and we would spend long hours talking about everything from the books we were reading to politics. The sex was amazing, for both of us, but it was the intimacy that came after that I think we both craved the most. An intimacy I would be seeking out shortly given the current topic of conversation between Azriel and I. 

“Gods the other day she was weaning a light blue dress in the garden and I nearly fell to my knees before her,” Azriel ranted to me. 

He had been going on and on about whether or not he wanted to finally make a move on Elain or not. And as his best friend I had to hear about every word of it.

“I saw it, it was a very pretty dress,” I acknowledge, turning the page of the book I was reading. 

“I swear she blushed when I complimented it too, I think I’m making progress with her,” he went on to say. 

“Maybe you should just put yourself out of your misery and talk to her Az,” I suggested for probably the tenth time. 

“You know I can’t just barrel in there. She’s scared and I’m not going to freak her out even more. She will come to me when she’s ready. If she’s ready. Gods that’s assuming she even likes me,” he rambled. 

I roll my eyes and shut my book so loudly it pulls the shadow singers attention. I give him a pointed look that has him startling back just a bit. 

“I know that she likes you Az,” I deadpan. 

“How can you be sure though?” he asks, throwing his head back on the arm of the couch. 

“Because she would be an idiot not to,” I say with a hint of sadness. 

Azriel looked to be at a loss for words, and I realized my words were much bolder than I had wanted them to be. 

Clearing my throat I set my book down on the side table, knowing it will be waiting for me when I come back to my brother’s tomorrow. I stand and subtly adjust my dress.  

“I have to go, but seriously Az, just tell her,” I say walking over to press a kiss to his forehead. 

As I got to walk away I feel him grab my hand, placing a kiss to my open palm, “Thank you for listening y/n, really.” he says earnestly . 

“Don’t worry  about it Az, I’ll see you tomorrow,” I say with a fake smile before setting off towards my modest home. 

When Feyre moved into the townhouse I took it as my queue to move out, knowing my brother and his new mate would want privacy. Of course Rhysand offered me mansions and villas but I was content with a townhouse of my own in the middle of town. Big enough to have my own home library, and small enough to not feel so lonely. 

I make my way down the cobblestone streets, the faelights casting a warm glow on the ground before me. It was late, and many couples were turning in for the night. I could see some cuddled up on their sofa’s through their windows, others were having a nightcap together outside Rita’s. I saw a couple rocking their newborn baby to sleep on the second floor of their home, and for some reason, that was the one that hurt the most to me.

I sighed as I walked up a few steps to my townhouse door. I unlocked the door and was greeted to the smell of jasmine and vanilla and the sound of a cracking fire. I walk up my steps to find Lucien sitting shirtless on my large bed, his hair in a bun at the nape of his neck. The male was the image of relaxation. 

I had given him a key months ago. With the males many jobs, emissary to the night court, ally to Jurian and Vassa,  and liaison to Tamlin, he needed a place to truly call home. For the past 9 months that had been here, with me. I never once objected to his subtle moving in, it was nice to come home to someone waiting for me, sometimes even a homemade meal. For him it was nice to have a  place where he didn’t always have to put on a front. It was a win for both of us. 

“When did you get in?” I ask kicking off my shoes. 

“Just a couple hours ago. How was Azriel duty?” he asked, setting his book down as I began to strip off my cloak and dress leaving me only in my lingerie. It wasn’t uncommon for us to be so casual with one another. 

“Exhausting, did you know that Elain wore a pretty blue dress the other day?” I mocked tossing my clothes into a dirty clothes bin, I noticed his missing shirt was there too.

“Unfortunately yes I did,” he chuckled. “You know what always makes me feel better though?” he smirks. 

“I crawl up the bed towards him, “What?” I smile knowing what the answer will be. 

“You,” he smirks, grabbing my hips and pinning me to the mattress beneath him, his lips pressing to mine. 

“How funny I was about to say the same thing,” I laugh, feeling his lips tickle my neck as he makes his way further down my body. 

His mouth trails the inside of my thighs before sliding my panties down my legs, each brush of his fingers from my hips to my ankles feeling like heaven. The male had been gone for a week, and I was desperate for release. He licks a long stripe up my center, flicking his tongue over the bundle of nerves at the top. My back arches off the bed and his hands find my waist to pin me down. I feel his tongue begin to lap at my clit as his fingers slide into me, no doubt finding the pool of wetness waiting there. 

This is what me and Lu had always been good at, reading each other. When he had a stressful day  I always made sure to make him feel good, and when I came back to the house upset he never hesitated to get on his knees for me. There was this unsaid rule that we would always take care of eachother. 

Lucien’s tongue continues lapping my clit as his fingers curl to hit that spot inside of me that had me gasping for air. As I started to feel myself getting closer and closer he removed his mouth from me, drawing his fingers out slowly. One thing about hooking up for a year? You learn to read each other's bodies, and lord did the seventh son of Autumn know how to read mine. 

“Lu!” I cry out frustrated. 

“Shhh my darling,” he coos crawling up my body. “I simply want to cum with you tonight.” he smirked, seething himself inside of me. 

“Oh gods!” I cry feeling him fill me thoroughly. 

He pulls out and thrusts back in causing me to whimper once more. Mor was right about one thing, the autumn court males have fire in their blood and they fuck like it too. 

“I missed you, missed this,” Lucien groans, his face contorted in pleasure as he builds a steady pace. 

“I missed you too Lu,” I say through ragged breaths as he fucks into me like his life depends on it. Apparently the time apart made him needy as well. 

I could hardly speak as he thrust deeper into me, his hands on my waist holding me steady so tha he could hit me as deep as possible. When I felt myself start to clench around him he doubled over, burying his head in my neck as his hips continued to snap into me.

My hands found his back clinging to the flesh there for an anchor, my walls fluttering around him one last time before I fell apart.The sudden sensation had Lucien biting my neck as he came with a low groan. 

We spent a few moments catching our breaths, he pushed up on his arms and moved a stray hair from my face, assessing to see if he had hurt me, just like he always did.  When he found no traces of pain in my face he rolled over, taking me with him so that I was lying on his chest. 

This was always the part I think we both craved the most. The sex was great, amazing even. But I longed for a pair of arms to fall asleep in, and he longed for someone to hold. Meaningless pillowtalk just for fun.

“I mean it, I did miss you,” I sigh circling my arms around his waist. 

“I missed you too, I hate sleeping in the spring court, it’s so cold and dark there now.” Lucien said, staring at the ceiling. 

“How is Tamlin?” I ask, already knowing the answer.

“Terrible,” he muttered. “I had to talk him into letting me stay.”  He continues playing with the ends of my hair. 

“You’re a good friend for checking in on him though,” I say matter of factly. 

“I still wish I could do more,” he sighs, pulling the covers up on the two of us.

“I understand,” I mutter keeping my head on his chest, staring at the fire that roars next to us. 

A long beat of comfortable silence passes, normally I would fall asleep like this. I would sometimes wake to him being gone, sometimes he would wake to me being gone. Only on weekends would both be able to wake up and go to breakfast together. This was one of those weekends, but instead of falling asleep, Lucien spoke up. 

“Can I ask you something?” he asked, not taking his gaze from the ceiling. 

“Sure,” I reply, waiting for a nonchalant inquiry. It wasn’t the first time he and I had played 20 questions to get to know each other more, though I thought that after a year of it we knew just about everything there was to know about the other. 

“Would you agree that Azriel and Elain are never going to give us a chance?” he asked. 

My heart twinges hearing his name, “Well Az doesn’t know, but even if he did I don’t think he would care. I’m not damsel in distress enough for him.” I snort recalling the unconscious type he has.

“I feel the same about Elain, and there’s something I’ve been thinking about, especially this past week,” he continues still facing the ceiling. 

I prop my head up on his chest wanting to read his face and his eyes flit to me, “Cryptic Vanserra, but go on,” I laugh trying to break the tension. 

“I’ve always been fond of you y/n ever since you visited the spring court all those years ago. Now that I’ve gotten to know you, that admiration has only grown, not to mention you’re a very beautiful female y/n,” he laughs at his own words, a tint of pink dusting his cheek and I can’t help but blush as well. “From the amount of time we’ve been spending together it seems you like me enough, and well…I don’t want to be alone anymore,” he says seemingly avoiding his main point. 

I sit up more, intrigued by his words, “What do you mean Lu?” I inquire. 

“I was wondering if you would like to be Mrs. Lucien Vanserra?” he finally says and my heart nearly stops at the shocking words. “I know I’m not Azriel, but consider me an alternative. I think we could make eachother genuinely happy, maybe help each other enjoy whatever we have left of this miserable life?” he asks, his voice laced with uncertainty. 

I let his words sink in as I stare at the bit of wall behind him. As I consider all that he’s said I realize that he’s right, we do get along. I had spent years trying to find a male to fill the hole Azriel put in my  life, but it always felt wrong. It was as if I was taking someone else’s mate, even when the males didn’t have mates.  It didn’t feel wrong being with Lucien because I knew that his mate also didn’t want anything to do with him. 

I was tired of not always having someone to come home to. Not having someone to go to events with. Not having someone to spend holidays with. Not having someone to call my own. I was tired of being alone, especially since I had been alone for about 400 years, but no longer. 

I smile down at Lucien’s nervous face, “I would be honored to be your wife,” I say. 

“You would?” he beams. 

“I would,” I repeated back to him. “You’re right, we do get along, and I’m tired of being alone too.” 

He presses his lips to mine, both of us smiling into the kiss. We would never fill the sadness of a rejected mating bond, but we would be there for one another. I lay my  head down on his chest again, feeling the sleep come into my eyes. 

“How should we do it?” he asked, tracing shapes on my bare back.

“Hmm,” I thought for a moment. A big wedding seemed odd considering we weren’t mates or anything close to it. Eloping seemed more proper. “I think we should keep it small.”

“Do we tell them?” He ponders the most awkward question.

“We can tell them, but we don’t need to invite them. It can be a modified elopement, they will all know but we can just invite my brother and Feyre, that way we both have family there.” I answer snuggling into his warmth more. 

“By the Cauldron I have to tell your brother I’ve been sleeping with you for over a year,” Lucien said anxiously, running a hand down his face. 

I can’t help but laugh at his stress, “He might be a little mad, but I’m sure Feyre will be so excited about it that he won’t care.” I giggle. 

I feel his body relax under my cheek, no doubt realizing that whatever the High Lady says will be law. He slides a red and gold ring off his pinky finger and slips it onto my left hand. 

“Here, it’s a family ring,” he explains looking at the gaudy ring on  my hand. While it fits on my finger well the jewel on it takes up my whole hand and looks unnatural. “I know I’m not part of the Autumn Court anymore but it’s all I have.” he continues.

“It’s perfect,” I laugh, inspecting the ill-fitting thing, “it’s an outcast just like us.”

Lucien's soft chuckle escapes him as he plants a gentle kiss atop my head. Tomorrow promises its usual dose of chaos, but that's a concern for another day. Tonight, here in bed with my fiancé, though this isn't the life I envisioned, I find myself flooded with a happiness I haven't felt in ages.

Part 2,

Part 3 (Lucien's Version)

Part 3 ( Azriel's Version)

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