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baldursgate3tempobsessed · 2 years ago

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K follow me Astarion just sees tav like loving on children wherever they go and hes like?????

And tavs like ive always wanted my own child but i didn't wabt to ask you with every

This sends poor starion into a crisis does he was children how many

I think I have followed you. Let's see!

So for this one we got a lil time jump, ambiguous and vague setting and timelines with game spoilers present. M/F pairing because that is my go to and pregnancy is mentioned. Vampiric pregnancy also so there is some weirdness there (i made it up no idea if it's dnd accurate). Vague Tav backstory of a wonderful mother and going off to become a cleric.

Astarion was well used to your antics by this point. You had a severe lack of instincts linked to self-preservation, which led to a consistent pattern of doing, frankly, stupid shit. Stupid, but kind. Nothing that Astarion hadn't adapted to, after nearly two years of being attached at the hip you became pretty attuned to your lover's personality.

He could even go as far as to say that he had grown to love your annoying predilection for pious morality. Perhaps he loved talking you out of certain virtuous dangers more, but still. He appreciated who you were, he adored who you were. But Astarion was no saint, despite his insistence on attaching himself to one.

Which is exactly why he was far from amused when you signed him up to babysit a couple of brats. All for acquittances he barely cared about.

But you at least had the good grace to look guilty, "I didn't mean to! But she looked so tired and she said their anniversary was coming up and it's not like we got anything for their wedding-"

That was a nice try, one that Astarion wasn't falling for, "We didn't know of their existence when they got married darling. Just because I can't remember their names doesn't mean you can trick me."

"I'm not trying to trick you!" You whined, arms crossed as you pouted. It sure felt like a trick, especially when Astarion knew that you were well-aware how easily he fell for your sulking. Adorable little monster that you were, "It's only three kids and a baby for one night, it won't be that bad! You don't even have to help-"

Astarion rolled his eyes as he sat next to you on the bed, "I didn't say I wouldn't help."

That seemed to do the trick to get the pout off of your face. You perked up immediately, looking at him like you couldn't quite believe it, "Really?"

"Yes, really," Astarion sighed as you tugged you closer. Sure he liked to bitch, but he really would do anything for you. Even extremely annoying things like this, "I'm not going to sit back and feed you to the wolves."

"They're not wolves! The oldest is barely five," You laughed as you let him manhandle you, settling you into his lap, "And I am sorry, I really wasn't thinking. I promise it won't happen again."

Astarion doubted that, not when he was well-versed of your weak spot for children. No matter where you went you couldn't help but fawn over them, not to mention the insane lengths you would go to keep any child safe. It was a complete and utter blind spot, your kindness extending to them all, even the little scam artists and hellions.

It was sweet, if not extremely worrying at first. Astarion had been terrified of you finding out his past. The things that he had been forced to do, the innocents whose lives he had destroyed. But not only did you find out, you were forced to see it. Both of you were, and it had been worse than anything Astarion could have imagined. He had always found a slight comfort knowing that those he captured would at least die quickly, that at the very least they wouldn't suffer the same agonizing fate as he, just an agonizing death. But no, even that small comfort had been a lie. The horror of finding them all down there has yet to be matched. He had never felt more self-loathing, more pure disgust than the moment he had found those children, tortured and pale, all because of him.

How you didn't see him for the wretched thing he was after all that, Astarion wasn't sure. But he was grateful. You were too good for him. A fact that he was devastatingly aware of, but that wasn't going to stop him from keeping you.

He still thinks about it on occasion, despite the fact that he had done all he could to right his wrongs. They all at least had a chance now to have a life worth living, Astarion could only hope that it would be used. Their future was out of his hands now, a small comfort.

But despite his complicated feelings towards children, he was more than capable of handling them for one evening. And in all honesty, he truly didn't have to do much. He was on self-mandated baby duty, because of course you had to help out the infant that would scream bloody murder unless it was being held. Keeping her tucked against him was a move of self-preservation, if he ever wanted to retain his hearing.

Most of the night was spent amused as he watched you entertain a gaggle of toddlers. You were so... creative with the ways you could defuse their antics. It came to you so naturally, nearly like you were a born mother yourself. It wasn't exactly surprising that you were fantastic with children, he had seen it time and time again. Arabella, Mol, Yenna, all of which still wrote you letters, visited occasionally. Staying forever attached, even from a distance.

Now that Astarion thought about it, it was odd that you weren't a mother. Odder still that you hadn't never even brought up the possibility of having children together. You were usually so open with your wants and always encouraging the same from him. Just one more thing he loved about you. But... why hadn't it been mentioned? Astarion had always assumed it was because you didn't truly want any of your own, that you enjoyed their fun innocence while avoiding the more laborious responsibility of raising them.

Though watching you take care of them all, changing diapers and negotiating silly arguments with a soft smile of your face had him rethinking his assumption.

"You're good with them," Astarion said eventually after you had successfully set the older three down for the night, the baby still stubbornly clinging to him, "I don't think there's a child we've met that doesn't adore you."

You laughed quietly, walking over to kiss him softly on the cheek. Your eyes wandered to the sleeping infant in his arms, still holding a piece of his shirt in it's little fist, "You don't seem to be too bad with them either."

"Newborns don't know any better," Astarion dismissed as he tried to put her down in their borrowed crib. Tried and failed, considering how the thing immediately started to whine the second he attempted to pry it's little hand away.

Oh for fuck's sake. Astarion wasn't even going to try and argue. Instead he unbuttoned his shirt and let it fall into the crib with her, seemingly doing the trick of stopping her from waking completely.

When he turned back you were staring at him with soft eyes, looking lovestruck at the simple act of him laying a child down, "Looks like she has pretty good taste to me."

"I don't think your judgment should be trusted," Astarion huffed as he walked over to you, grabbing your hand to drag you to the bedroom. He glanced back at you, his heart nearly skipping a beat from the sweet way you kept looking at him. It had his mind wandering again, those questions still nagging him.

Questions that he didn't have the courage to ask until dead of night, when he had you half asleep against his bare chest, "Have you ever thought of having children?"

He hadn't meant to blurt that out in the middle of the night, but Astarion apparently had a knack for starting important conversations at inconvenient times. Not that you minded.

You just cuddled into him closer, nodding against him with a sigh, "I've always wanted my own children. My own mother, Gods bless her soul, made it all sound so magical. Pregnancy, the early years, puberty, all of it. She loved it all. And I guess it rubbed off on me. It used to be all I could think about, before real life got in the way."

Astarion listened, a little annoyed at himself for not putting the pieces together sooner. You had talked so lovingly about your late parents, how you always wanted to be like your mother. Of course you would want children. How had he not connected the dots?

"But then I went off to the temple," You continued, "I completed my training, went off into the world to do good, blah, blah, blah. You know the story."

"So you grew out of the idea?" Astarion asked.

"Not exactly," You admitted, sounding a little guilty, "But I would never ask that of you love, it's not something you have to worry about."

That-what?

Astarion stared down at you, brow furrowed, "What do you mean?"

"I mean I know that the topic of children is... difficult for you. Considering everything you've been through-"

"I think you mean to say everything I've inflicted on others," Astarion interrupted, unwilling to allow himself grace. Especially when it came to the children of the Gur, "It was much worse for them than me."

You nodded, knowing better than to try and fight him on that particular topic, "I understand, but my point is that I can live without them. You're all I need."

It was comforting to hear, an immediate balm to a brand new set of insecurities that Astarion hadn't been prepared for. But even so... he hated the idea of you sacrificing even more for him. It felt wrong, "But-"

"But nothing," You interrupted softly, setting a quick kiss to his mouth, I'm serious Astarion, you don't need to worry. I'm happy, I love you, and everything is fine."

"I love you too," Astarion murmured, at a loss to say anything else. But the conversation didn't end there.

Astarion couldn't stop thinking about it, even long after the temporary children were sent back home. ou seemed so... sure that he didn't want children, and a week ago he probably would have agreed. But that was back before he knew that he was actively keeping you away from something you wanted. Something you had dreamed about since you were a child. And it felt wrong to be the reason for that, so, so wrong.

He didn't even know if his true feelings on the matter were real. He didn't want children for many of the same reasons he never wanted a partner. The attachment to another was dangerous, he was beyond unequipped to deal with others, let alone care for them, and the entire ideology behind love was ripe for manipulation and heart break. But then he met you and everything changed. Suddenly, caring for another didn't feel like a weakness, it felt like the strongest aspect of his entire self. Taking care of you wasn't an unwanted duty, it was intimacy. Something that he now craved. If all of those steadfast ideals could fall apart simply through meeting you, whose to say he could even trust himself when it came the thoughts around having a child?

Would having one truly be so bad? A little piece of the two of you, alive in the world? And perhaps children were annoying but... Astarion would be lying if he said he didn't have a soft spot for them. He had kept his distance before, but now he was fully confident that he wasn't a danger, no with Cazador burned to nothing bus ash and his own bloodlust well controlled. And it's not as if he was incapable of being a father, worse men than him did it everyday.

It was a confusing place to be, this tightwire of indecisiveness. Confusing enough for him to start a bit of research. He was vaguely aware that it was possible for his kind to breed, but finding out the details was disheartening, to say the least. First he had to parse out the different horror stories of babes eating their way out of their mother's wombs with actual facts, which wasn't exactly pleasant. But the truth was that it was more than possible for the two of you to have child together. It had the potential to either be as noneventful as any pregnancy, with the cavate that the babe coming out looking slightly... dead wouldn't be a permanent state of being. Or it could be as risky as carrying a child could be, with pains and complications galore, even legitimate worries of internal bleeding from the wretched thing prematurely growing claws. Not to mention the occasional, intense blood lust that could occur, an experience that Astarion would prefer you didn't have to go to.

Looking into the reality of the choice didn't help as much as he had assumed it would. If anything it just made the whole situation more real. Even if he wasn't a vampiric spawn, childbirth was risky. Maybe not as risky for you considering how Astarion would move the heavens and hells to get you the best care possible, but still. The thought of you passing, leaving him alone with the child you wanted and would never see, would destroy him. Completely and utterly.

But then again... there was the magical alternative of everything working out just fine. The two of you were both beyond lucky in that regard, considering how you'd overcome mind flayer parasites and fought and won against a near god. It was more than possible that everything would be fine, that you would have a beautiful pregnancy that would end in an even more amazing child. Then two would become three, a family of his very own.

That... didn't sound too bad. Astarion was torn. On one hand, he was almost certain that he was willing to go through with it. Not just because he loved you and wanted you to be happy, though it was the main reason. But also because... he could be a part in making something good. A child that would never suffer the way he did, the way countless others had. One who would be loved, who would have the help they needed for their inevitable unholy hungers. Someone precious for the two of you to fret over, to adore and care for. He... wanted that. Or at least he would if you still did. Now if he could just figure out how to bring it up, maybe something could actually happen.

But luckily enough for him, you did the job for him. He had been pouring over another book dedicated to recording the births of Dhampirs in the area, only to be distracted by you loudly sighing behind him.

"What's wrong love?" Astarion asked, his eyes still scanning the page in front of him.

"Oh I don't know," You sighed, rounding the corner to sit on the edge of his desk, "I just can't help but wonder when you're going to explain why you've suddenly become obsessed with parenting books. And..."

You trailed off, ignoring his surprised expression to read the cover of what was in front of him, "'Vampiric and Mortal Love & The Spawn They Create'. It's not exactly your usual reading material."

Part of Astarion wanted to be surprised that you had already figured him out. He had at least been trying to hide things from you slightly, not that it mattered when you could read him like a book. And he supposed that blatantly reading things like this in front of you would eventually have an effect, even if he tried to obscure the titles.

But that didn't stop him from stuttering through a response, "Well-I, okay. I've just been thinking about options lately. Which you can't really do if you don't understand what they are. Hence the books."

You frowned at him, one leg crossed over the other, "Star, I already told you that you don't need to worry-"

"But I want to worry," Astarion interrupted, deciding that ripping the band-aid off would be the best course of action, "And if there is something I can be doing to make you happier than I should at least consider it."

"I'm not going to force you into this for that," You said softly, reaching out to twine his fingers against yours, "This isn't the kind of thing you do just for someone else."

Astarion was aware of that, there was an important truth to your words. But... "What if it wasn't just for you?"

You paused, your brow furrowed as you stared at him, "What do you mean?"

"I mean what if, and consider this purely hypothetical, what if I wanted one as well. What then?" It was as far from hypothetical as Astarion could get, but by the look on your face it didn't seemed like that needed to be clarified.

You swallowed, looking just shy of hopeful as you played with his hand, "I... well. I guess in that case we would have a lot to talk about."

That wasn't quite the answer he was looking for. He pressed on, "So if in theory, I did want one. Would... you still be interested in having one?"

With me?

He left that part unsaid as he waited for an answer, uncharacteristically nervous as you mulled it over. But you were smiling, bright and wide, giving his hand a little squeeze as you spoke, "I think that would be the only scenario where I would want it. If that's something you wanted."

"I think it is," Astarion answered honestly, done with being coy, "I don't know how, I... I'm not quite sure how I feel about you carrying something that could be dangerous. But... in general yes. I think I want this. I do want this. With you and only you. Whenever your ready."

The next part Astarion did see coming, his arms already open by the time you launched yourself at him. You straddled his lap, kissing every part of his face as you babbled, "We can wait! It doesn't need to be now but-I just-yes! Adoption, childbirth, I don't care. All I need is to have them with you. That's all I want."

"And that I can give," Astarion laughed, delighted at your reaction. He still had concerns, plenty of them in fact, but they were hard to consider when the woman he adored was so ecstatic.

He gripped your chin, chuckling at the whine you let out for him interrupting your onslaught of affection. You didn't have to wait long, not when he directed your mouth against his, kissing you deeply as a new wave of exciting, and slightly nauseating feelings worked through him.

He didn't know exactly what was going to happen in the future. He had no idea if he would be a good father, but he knew that he would try his damndest. He didn't know how the two of you would even procure a child, but he did no one thing.

With you by his side, it would work out. All of it, no matter how hard the road turned out to be. And that was all that mattered.

#astarion #astarion x reader #astarion x tav #baldur's gate 3 #asks #you'll pry my long posts out of my cold dead hands #spoilers #pregnancy mention #should i do a part 2 of this?#dhampir baby part two?#fun fact im actually so scared of pregnancy it sounds like hell to me #so pregnancy/child fics are very interesting to write #personally #i'm getting through these asks slowly but surely #nine more to go!

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iridescentmirrorsgenshin · 5 months ago

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How close do you think Kaveh and Alhaitham were back in the Akademiya times?

Hiya! Akademiya days haikaveh are so precious to me, so thank you for giving me an opportunity to ramble about them <3

Outside of the character stories detailing their argument, Alhaitham and kaveh’s initial friendship is most touched upon in-game in their current, informed knowledge of each other - when we first meet kaveh, alhaitham says that he knows kaveh extremely well, and kaveh describes the perceived flaws of alhaitham’s personality

there are a few mentions of their initial friendship during kaveh’s hangout where kaveh discusses first approaching alhaitham in the library, as well as them briefly discussing their joint thesis and the reason for its abandonment, and kaveh also mentions that over an undefined number of years, he and alhaitham have discussed, or ‘argued’, about kaveh’s philosophies

Also, their past friendship is mentioned in a parade of providence when alhaitham uses the language he and kaveh learnt together during this thesis in order to solely communicate with him, which creates an exclusive intimacy between the two

Outside of in-game information about their past closeness, alhaitham’s character stories outline their friendship, but only in reference to their joint project, where it’s explained that they fell out due to differing perspectives – which is similar to what he says to the traveller in kaveh’s hangout

Overall, other than describing kaveh as his ‘former friend’, alhaitham’s character stories omit any significant detail regarding their friendship, as well as omitting any detail after his graduation, other than moving into the house he and kaveh would have shared, and then how alhaitham met him once more when kaveh was bankrupt

Other than kaveh, there is no mention of alhaitham maintaining or even forming any other friendships in his time at the akademiya – and this is highlighted in his character story where it states that due to his detachment from others, he only partook in one joint project in his student life, and that was with kaveh, with kaveh leaving it up to alhaitham to decide the topic for their project

Alhaitham shares the same values as kaveh when it comes to their opposing philosophies being a strength, as the topic he picks harmonises their mirroring fields of interest. Additionally, this is highlighted in his character stories where he believes he and kaveh are mirrors of each other, and that this is essential in achieving a ‘perfected’ vision. It’s only when personal issues arise that this harmony is threatened, and that it is ‘personality’ issues, rather than philosophical issues which is the basis for their falling out

the surfacing of their issues stems from kaveh’s desire to help the others involved in their project at the cost of his efforts - this is more speculatory, but as kaveh left it with alhaitham to decide the topic, it could be that a group project wasn’t what alhaitham had in mind when agreeing to collaborate with kaveh.

in alhaitham’s character stories, there’s no mention of other scholars involved in the project, and only kaveh is mentioned as someone that alhaitham would willingly involve himself with in a joint project. For me, it seems that alhaitham initially agreed to work with kaveh, and kaveh alone, only for people to join over time, encouraged by kaveh.

(although kaveh’s character stories state that he realises that he and alhaitham handle social situations differently, he believes their differences aren’t altogether a bad thing

I think this is so interesting because when working on the group project with others there’s this heavy implication that, before this, alhaitham and kaveh were distant from other people when spending time together, as this project seems to be the first time that they’re confronted with the influence of others to such an extent, as this becomes the catalyst for voicing their concerns/issues with the way the other deals with people)

Alhaitham choosing to work on a project with someone when he never did so previously, and never does so afterwards, highlights kaveh as an anomaly for alhaitham, and shows that the two must have been very close at the time, especially with the knowledge that people in sumeru undertake research projects to form an academic family

This is also relevant in considering the theme of ‘home’ both for kaveh and alhaitham, which is most explicitly seen in kaveh’s character stories, where we learn the origin and the end of their friendship, as well as the few key details that indicates how close the two were

We can infer that alhaitham fills an integral role in kaveh’s life as he is written to have met alhaitham immediately or soon after his mother left for Fontaine, leaving him alone, and without family, in sumeru – just as alhaitham joins the akademiya after the passing of his grandmother, where he is then approached by kaveh. this implies that they fill similar, familial roles in the other’s life

Overall, alhaitham was disinclined to interact with others outside of kaveh, and his exception of kaveh when it comes to a group project shows how much value he placed in his bond with kaveh, a bond which is prioritised by alhaitham throughout their falling out, and to the present day

It isn’t certain how long alhaitham and kaveh were friends for after meeting, only that it was enough time for kaveh to form the opinion of alhaitham being his ‘best’ friend, and for them to decide to undertake a thesis together (which, as discussed, and is something I refuse to get over, can be equitable to forming an academic family, relating to the roles they have respectively taken in each other’s lives)

kaveh considered alhaitham as an ‘intelligent corroborator’ at the beginning of their joint project, which he considered to be rare, and after their falling out due to differences, kaveh believed himself to have been thinking wishfully about their compatibility

Their argument informs us how much the two actually know each other, in that alhaitham is thoroughly aware of kaveh’s father’s passing (which, according to kaveh’s hangout, wasn’t uncommon for students to know of as he recalls feeling judged because of this)

however, the difference lies in that of personal admission. Alhaitham is aware of the context of kaveh’s altruism in relation to his grief, something which other people, such as Layla, can only guess at

Whilst it isn’t certain whether kaveh informed alhaitham of any guilt he felt previously, as this supposed weaponisation of said guilt is the cause of kaveh ending their friendship, judging from kaveh’s reaction to alhaitham’s usage of this knowledge, being that of feeling ‘cut to quick’, kaveh essentially feels betrayed of the trust he placed in alhaitham - considering their implied and explicit past closeness (with kaveh's voice line stating that if he and alhaitham were as close as they used to be, he wouldn't hesitate in showing gratitude for alhaitham helping him) and their definitive informed knowledge of each other, I think it’s very likely that they did talk about these things, or enough for alhaitham to form his own understanding of kaveh’s situation

Additionally, Alhaitham is aware of kaveh’s lack of immediate familial attachments, comparing them to be similar in this sense, even though kaveh’s mother is alive and living in Fontaine, which indicates that alhaitham is aware of their lack of correspondence, and in turn kaveh’s deliberate distance from his mother

Although kaveh is described as being popular and having many friends amongst his classmates, these classmates are not mentioned by name or explored, either in his hangout or his character stories. Kaveh’s bond with alhaitham is the main focus of his character stories in comparison to the nameless friends of kaveh’s school days and post-graduation; since alhaitham can truly see through kaveh, this appears to be a bond to favour, regardless of all the unpleasantries this can bring from being innately known – encapsulated in kaveh piecing back together the thesis cover that he tore up, which signalled the end of his and alhaitham’s friendship

Beyond their initial meeting in the house of daena, and kaveh coming to talk to alhaitham which instigated their friendship, there aren’t many details as to what their original friendship looked like (only that kaveh, at first, believed them to be on the same wavelength, and to have a ‘completed’ view, only to realise that although their viewpoints differed, this wasn’t a negative, and actually strengthened their friendship), but there are a few specific anecdotes of what the two did/experienced together during their initial friendship which I thought would be fun to explore

alhaitham remembers that kaveh used to annotate books in the house of daena and even earnt himself a nickname, which he references to fluster kaveh, only for the traveller to have no clue what this refers to. I think this is a really nice detail, as it shows the history between the two, and that they both hold a deep understanding of each other outside of the traveller’s knowledge

The other anecdote is that alongside the two learning the script from king deshret’s civilisation together (or if alhaitham knew it beforehand and helped kaveh in familiarising himself, it isn’t clear), alhaitham also read kaveh’s favourite books pertaining to ancient architecture for their thesis, and recorded his own notes, alongside kaveh’s. it’s an intimate detail I think that kaveh recognises alhaitham’s handwriting, which I presume is something that is reciprocal <3

Another thing of interest in kaveh’s character stories is an excerpt of an essay in his old sketchbook, which refers to the individual’s beliefs being prioritised over the backing of the collective, which resonates with alhaitham’s philosophies in his character stories when asserting the importance of the individual over the collective

additionally, kaveh's essay also outlines that the purpose of existence is not to solely pursue knowledge, and that it lies in people, with knowledge existing regardless of if it being understood by people - aligning with alhaitham’s character stories of knowledge not being the final destination of humankind, and that it exists externally, outside of human pursuit, in the logic of the natural world

This highlights that despite their key differences, their views can ultimately find a middle ground, which also contextualises the original founding of their friendship, and why kaveh believed that their united viewpoints were ‘complete’ before realising their fundamental differences

Overall, in their student days, i'd say that alhaitham and kaveh were each other’s prioritised bond, fulfilling roles of intellectual corroborators, mirror opposites, best friends, and family <///3 (i would love to get some snapshots into their lives as students, like the details we get about tighnari and cyno’s student days together recent events)

#haikaveh #kavetham #alhaitham #kaveh #genshin impact #alhaitham x kaveh #thank you so much for your ask!!!#sorry it took so long to get to! i'm off more than i'm online these days :(( but this was so fun to get into #i'm absolutely sick with the both of them #what was alhaitham thinking at the time this kshahrewar scholar came over and asked if he needed anything?#what did they talk about then??? and kaveh approached alhaitham more than once in the same way....#was alhaitham looking forward to their interactions?? yes.#i would love a timescale of their respective time in the akademiya and how long they were friends for but then hoyoverse would have to #disclose their actual ages and this seems to scare them so i'm afraid it will never be :(((

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