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#the nonsense she has put up with has given her the right for a get out of jail free card on this one
mike-el · 14 days
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would absolutely love if in part 2 Colin loses it when he finds out about whistledown and Penelope is just like fuck it I’m tired of apologizing this is my art this is who I am either you’re with me or you’re not.
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worldlxvlys · 3 months
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part two of Chris texts but he has a toxic gf? :)
texts w/ chris who has a toxic gf (p2)
chris sturniolo x reader
warnings: cursing, chris is in a toxic relationship
a/n: <333
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“hello” i was met with the sound of chris’s hoarse voice.
“chris, what happened ?” i asked.
“i mean, at first she was just saying a bunch of random nonsense. but then she started talking about you and-” his voice broke slightly and he let out a deep sigh.
“i don’t know, i just never want to hurt you. and you’re always there for me, and it’s like- i mean, doesn’t it get annoying?” his voice was gentle, and it was obvious he had given this plenty of thought.
“like, aren’t you tired of always catching me when i fall? or being my shoulder to cry on? picking me up when she abandons me at a random party? wiping my tears away after she makes me cry?” i realized he was crying as he spoke the words.
“chris, listen to me. i would do anything for you. anything. i’m your best friend, of course i’m gonna look after you. it’s not tiring or a burden to me, if i get to see you smile again, it’s worth it. you’re worth everything”
“and i’m sorry, but she’s the problem. you’re right, i am there to take care of you after she fucks up. i’m not gonna tell you what to do, but i don’t want to see you continue to get hurt by her. “
“i know” he whispered.
“there’s only so much i can do, chris. you need to decide if this relationship with her is worth the pain. either way, i’ll be here for you. always.”
“i love and appreciate you more than i can put into words”
“it’s ok, you don’t have to”
——————
masterlist
tag list: @lustfulslxt @gwenlore @flowerxbunnie @sturnssx @mattslolita @its-jennarose @sturnsdior @sophssturn @bernardsleftbootycheek @queen161718 @cupidsword @imwetforyourmom @nickmillersn1gf @stramboli4life @mattsneezing @chrisstankyleg @sturniolobltch @vib3swithanuk @ciarasturn1 @bethsturn @bernardenjoyer @mbbsgf @rac00ns-are-c00l4 @ssturniolo @blueeyedbesson @mxqdii @sturniolowhore @rheaakayourname @defnotayonna @urmom2bitch @abbie13sworld @starsturniolo @hearts4chriss @theyluv-meee @sturns-posts @carolinalikesthings @itzdarling @chrisstopherfilmed @judespoision @sstvrnioloo @littlebookworm803 @nicksdrpepper @chrisloyalgf @robins-scoop @fandomhopped @chr1sgirl4life @bbglmfao @ilovethesturniolotriplets @sturniolololover @55sturn
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greynatomy · 5 months
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cindy lou who
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alexia putellas x reader
social media + real life (no part two)
face claim - sabrina carpenter
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liked by taylorswift, harrystyles and 2,648,826 others
yourinstagram made a little something special for the holidays
‘fruitcake’ is out now 🤍
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user AHHHH a christmas album!!!!
user nonsense (christmas version) 👀
taylorswift so proud!
↳ yourinstagram ty mother!
user guys… cindy lou who
Alexia was at training when she received a notification on her phone. Pulling it out, she sees a familiar notification. ‘yourinstagram posted a photo’
Clicking on it, she sees your new post. A new album.
“Hey, baby.”
Alexia quickly clots out of the app, putting her phone in her pocket.
“Hey.”
“What’re you doing?”
“Oh, you know.” Alexia shrugs her shoulders. “Just going through the socials, emails.”
“Oh, okay. Well, you wanna go to this restaurant I’ve always wanted to try?”
“Sure.”
At dinner, Alexia gets another notification. Seeing it, she acts like it was from her manager, excusing herself from the table.
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liked by taylorswift, shawnmendes and 3,648,738 others
yourinstagram since you guys have blown up ‘fruitcake’ i give to you ‘santa doesn’t know you like i do’ music video! enjoy <3
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user mother is feeding us
user omfg is that shawn fucking mendes??
↳ greynatomy it’s not, but pretend it is
taylorswift on repeat!
↳ yourinstagram 🤍🤍
shawnmendes who’s that handsome fellow?
↳ yourinstagram lyle
↳ user can’t take her seriously
↳ user why am i shipping?
Alexia hasn’t had the chance to listen to the album, but from the looks of it, it’s become a hit in just a few hours.
Returning to the table, she sees that the desserts have been brought out.
“What did your manager want?”
“Oh, you know, just some football talk about the game soon.”
All her girlfriend does is nod, going back on her phone.
It’s been a year since Alexia broke up with you, but she couldn’t seem to stop thinking of you. Everywhere she looked, you were there, whether it was your songs or in posters and magazines.
You were everywhere.
You looked so beautiful in the pictures you posted, but she couldn’t help but wonder about that Shawn guy. Who is he to you? Alexia knew she had no right to be jealous, but she couldn’t help it.
Getting back home, her girlfriend was all over her, hoping to get lucky, but she wasn’t in the mood, pushing her away, giving a sorry of an excuse as to why she didn’t want to.
As her girlfriend slept, she stayed in the living room, putting her headphones on.
The first song, she remembers you writing it. The first time you let Alexia listen to it, it ended with you both back in bed. She grinned at the memory.
Getting to the fourth track, she carefully listens to the lyrics, quickly realizing that it was about her and her new relationship.
“Is this how you really feel?” Alexia asks herself.
She had met her now girlfriend a couple of months after the breakup when she went to Ibiza to let loose. She was aware of how quickly she moved on, so caught up in the new relationship.
She decides to sleep on the couch, not being able to bear sleeping next to her girlfriend.
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liked by shawnmendes, alexiaputellas and 1,335,284 others
yourinstagram what’s in your wishlist?
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shawnmendes am i in yours?
↳ yourinstagram in your dreams
↳ user i need to know if they’re dating!
haileesteinfeld you’re in mine
↳ yourinstagram ily bby
user ugh she’s so pretty
It’s been two weeks since Alexia had listened to your new album. In those two weeks, she broke up with her girlfriend, much to her now ex-girlfriend’s pleas.
Alexia was the one to break up with you. No real reason given, just something about needing space. Remembering back to that conversation, Alexia realizes how much hurt she caused you.
Walking around the neighborhood, seeing all the Christmas lights, it reminds her of how the both of you would walk this very same path, looking at all the lights. Christmas has always been your favorite holiday.
Feeling guilty, she scrolls through her contacts, thumb hovering over your name. Clicking on it, she hears the call ring for a bit, some good news that you haven’t blocked her number. Eventually it goes to voicemail.
“Hey, uh, it’s Alexia. Um, I’ve, uh, just been thinking about you lately. I’m walking and seeing all the lights and I remember how it was your favorite thing to do. And, uh, it’s been a year and I know I have a lot to apologize for. So, if you do get this, please call me back… I miss you. Bye.”
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smutzslxt · 5 months
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I WANT YOU TO TOUCH ME THERE| S.Gojo x fem!reader
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ꨄSynopsis:Everyone thought that Satoru Gojo was a good looking man with a flawless personality ,but you knew that wasn’t true.That man hates you and you don’t even know why, but you are about to find out.
ꨄpairing: Bully!Satoru x popular-fem!reader
ꨄWC: 2001
ꨄrated: mature ,18+,mdni
ꨄCW: Heavy smut, dom!fem!reader x sub!gojo, dick riding, characters are 18+,p in v,semi public sex (in a changing room),pet names (Angel,good boy,Whore), getting caught.
ꨄA/N :we all love submissive satoru, right?
Whenever people tell you how great Satoru Gojo is , you just roll your eyes. Nothing was great about this idiot maybe he looked good, but he was an ignorant, eogoistic asshole.
You didn’t like him, but don’t worry, the feeling is mutual. Whenever your eyes meet each other, they shine full of hatred that you had for each other.
Whenever he had the opportunity, he embarrassed you, he ‘accidentally’ spills his drink over your white blouse, he bumps into you whenever he had a chance and the worst…he spreads rumors about you.
These rumors endangered your popularity rank. Every time you enter school there are new rumors about you.” Have you heard it, people say she got fingered by someone in class”
What nonsense, you thought when you walked through the hallway. Every time you walked past people, they started whispering.” People say she has given someone a blowjob in the toilet a week ago”
Your eyes found those of the students who were 1-2 younger than you.So how dare these nobodies to talk about you this way.
“Do you have anything to tell me?” You said when you put yourself in front of the anxious girl. She looked at her friend who seemed just as intimidated as she was. How pathetic.
“I’m sorry,” she whispered and didn’t even dare to look at you. “Who do you think you are to spread rumours about me“Again and again you were in the same situation.
People talk about you ,behind your back, and then they don’t even dare to open their mouths in front you. Your hands clenched into fists as you felt all the looks of other students on you.
“Who told you this stupid rumor?” It was actually already clear who it was. You just wanted to hear it from her mouth. The other rumors were more harmless but to tell around that you were fingered in class or that you have given someone a blowjob in the school toilet simply crosses the line.
“A boy from the upper class he has white hair and blue eyes”Satoru Gojo this stupid jerk. Anger spread in your body and a layer of goose bumps formed on your skin when you imagined what you are going to do with this blue-eyed motherfucker now.
“If I find out again that you’re telling rumors about me again, it gets very unpleasant between us, do you understand?” The hasty nod of the intimidated girl was like a start signal for you.
You sprint along the hallway in search of the boy who called himself the strongest. The anticipation of hurting his big ego caused the corners of your mouth to rise.
A loud ringing sounded through the corridors and then you finally saw something - or rather someone who could help you find your prey.
“Suguru” you shouted loudly through the brightly lit room. Like on command, he turned in your direction, just like other students who looked at you questionably but that didn’t interest you at all right now.
With a quick step, you walked towards your bully’s best friend and stood right in front of him.You skillfully ignored personal space at the moment you stood on your toes to be on an equal footing with him.
“Is there anyone else inside?” You asked and pointed your thumb at the changing room.” Only Satoru, but I had no more nerves to sit in there while he looks at himself in the mirror”
An insidious grin formed on your face. The success of finally standing up to him was so close you could feel it.” I’m going for a smoke and waiting for the idiot, do you want to keep me company for so long?”
In contrast to Gojo, Suguru was always nice to you, sometimes you even spent time together but you were disturbed by Satoru every time.
You don’t really know what happened, but you also got along well, but at some point he just started to hate you and you just couldn’t find out the reason why he did.
“I still have to do something”Geto nodded and said goodbye to you.” See you tomorrow,” he said and waved one last time before he made his way to the exit.
Your eyes searched through the hallway and when you didn’t see anyone, you opened the door to the changing rooms and huried in.
“What the hell” you heard a very well-known voice whispering behind you when you quietly closed the door behind you. “What are you doing here?” The white-haired egoist asked you as your eyes stared at each other.
To think about standing up to Satoru and then really putting it into action is a very big difference ,you just realised.
“You’re treating me like shit,” you finally said and looked at him bitterly. “I was still okay with you spilling your drink on me or bump into me whenever you had the chance but you crossed the border by spreading these horrible rumors about me” Without really thinking about your words, they flooded out of your mouth in the second you met his pissed look.
“How do you know that was me?” He spoke in a deep voice and drove through his hair with his hand while he rolled his eyes like he was annoyed.” It’s obvious, besides, I was told that you are the one who spread these rumours”
Cristal blue eyes looked down at you as he took a few steps towards you.” Well you are right it was me, what do you want to about it?” He stood right in front of you when he asked you this question.
“Why are you doing this” you felt intimidated by him at the moment and the many feelings that fought in your body did not exactly make it easier for you in this situation.
“Because I hate you” he put his hands on the door behind you right next to your head, which made it impossible to escape now.
“The feeling is mutual” you don’t know what exactly had happened but in the second when the last word rolled over your lips you felt a soft lips pressing hard on yours. You needed time to realize that Satoru Gojo was kissing you.
You don’t return the kiss - no, on the contrary, you push him away from you and you could feel how his ego was hurt, but this only strengthened yours.
Confidently, you took a step towards him and stood on your toes.” You say you hate me and the next moment you kiss me, that confuses me a little” your nose tip touched his and you could feel his deep breath on your lips.
Your hands laid on his shoulders when you pushed him back so that he sat on the bench behind him. You don’t waste a second and immediately sit on his lap.
“How much do you hate me, Satoru?” You whisper against his lips when your hips began to roll against his. The hardness that formed in his pants does not go unnoticed, just like the wetness in your thong.
“Every time I see you I want to embarrass you in front of everyone, I want everyone to hate you so that you don’t have anyone-“ a soft moan escaped his mouth before he could finish talking.
“Except-“ you could feel how he pressed his cock more and more against your clit, which made you lean your head back and moan hardly audibly.
“Me” when you heard that, you stopped moving your hip, which made your clit throb. Your shocked expression made him talk again.
“I don’t want you to need anyone else but me” it could have sounded like a love confession, but for you it didn’t. To you it sounded like he wanted to own you as if you were just an object.
“You are an idiot” you put your hand on his belt and removed it from his pants,you dropped it on the floor next to you and the same happened to his pants until he was only in shorts and a shirt.
When you got up from his lap, he was about to pull you back on it, but you slapped his hands away.” can’t you wait a second,” you said annoyed.
He didn’t know what you were doing until he saw from the corner of his eye how the skirt you had on fell on the floor. When his eyes lingered on your red thong, you began to grin wide.
“I can’t believe it” you laughed out loud as you took off your thong.”I’m about to fuck with you” it felt like you were just given a trophy when you saw Satoru’s needy expression.
Without really thinking about it, Satoru took off his shorts and let them rest with the rest of your clothes. Your eyes were wide when you saw how long his cock was. At least 9 inches and thick, you wondered if your hand would fit completely around it.
“Actually, I thought guy’s with a big ego had a small cock but Satoru you surprised me once again ” you sit on his lap and rub your wet pussy against his hard dick.
When you positioned yourself over his cock, you felt his hands stop you. “I should-“ you knew what he wanted, but you wouldn’t let him.
Your hand laid on Gojo’s cheek when you said your next words.” You tell everyone that I am a slut, then let me show you what kind of slut I am”
His hands stayed on your hip as his tip ,with pre cum over it,entered your pussy. You were on the pill so a condom was not necessary.” If I already had as many cocks in me as you tell everyone, then you don’t have to prepare me.” You let yourself sink more and more until he was half inside you.
The unpleasant burning feeling made you bite your lip hard. It would have been a better idea if he had prepared you beforehand, but you didn’t want to give him this triumph.
Satoru’s fingers kneaded your ass as you took more of his cock into you. His breath became faster and he closed his eyes as he enjoyed the feeling of your tight pussy.
“What a whore you are, you look like you are fighting the urge not to cum right now” Your fingers stroked his cheek which made him open his eyes and look at you.
Like a queen on her throne, you sat on him and after you had finally took all 9 inches of his cock into you, you began to move your hip.
Satoru’s hands helped you ride him.He starts hissing when he felt you get tighter the moment your brought down your hand to rub your thumb against your clit.
You start to move your hips slowly, finding the perfect rhythm and pace. The way your warm walls contract around him and suck him in made him lean his head against the wall behind him and moan out.You weren’t better whenever he reached your g-spot you were screaming- not even caring about the people that could hear you.
“Be a good boy and cum inside me”you said and the second he felt that he was about to cum he connected your mouth with his.Thrusting inside you from below in a fast pace.He’s totally ignoring your rhythm and starts fucking you like you are his right hand.
“Fuck Angel”he whispered in between the kiss and groaned loud.The moment you felt his hot cum covering your walls, it made you cum as well.You two were moaning messes.While Satoru was still thrusting his dick inside you from below ,your pussy milked him dry.
“That’s a shock”the both of you looked towards the door and saw Suguru standing there with a big smile on his face.
“Why didn’t you both ask me to join?”
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inkdemonapologist · 1 month
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FINALLY got these scribbles from last session of the Cthulhu game scanned in lmao, THINGS HAVE BEEN SO BUSY but cthulhu has been very exciting!!
While looking for some Alan Leroy guy to figure out why the Phantom is following(?) him(?), we asked around with (a) his book club friends and (b) the mob, as one does. Sammy managed to avoid seeing the yellow sign when he realised very quickly what Cool Obscure Book this book club pal might be describing (unlike Jack, a polite boy who does not RAPIDLY AVERT HIS EYES FROM HIS CONVERSATIONAL PARTNER), but did not manage to avoid being hustled off by the mob to talk to The Boss when Henry asked just a few too many questions. it went fine but Sammy was SO STRESSED, HES ALREADY BEEN KIDNAPPED BY GANGSTERS ONCE HE DOESNT WANT TO DO IT AGAIN
also hes still cute in this hat. you should wear hats more often sammy. ANYWAY if you're here for Out of Context quotes from this session, I GOT EM RIGHT HERE UNDER THE CUT:
[Sammy is played by me, Joey is played by Boo (inkyvendingmachine), Henry is played by Maf (inkcryptid), Jack is played by Mochi (whatyouwantedmetosee) and Thren (haunted-hijinxer) is our GM!]
[Sammy] He will mention to Henry, something about "Oh boy, dreams are starting up again" kind of thing. [Henry] Yyyyup. [Henry] Don't get possessed again. [Sammy] [Sammy] i dON'T THINK SAMMY KNOWS WHAT TO DO WITH THAT!! The last time he got possessed was BY PROPHET, whom he still shares a body with!! [Henry] Prophet doesn't count! Don't get possessed by anyone else. [Sammy] .... I'LL DO MY BEST, [Sammy] I just like the idea of Henry being like 'don't get possessed' and Sammy just LOOKS at him, like............ I'm already possessed, what are you talking about
[Sammy] Given how these things like to happen on auspicious days, I'm a little worried about New Years,
[Joey] That's exactly the spin he's going to put on it -- Some time off for New Years, and a bonus day off to recover from the celebrations! [Jack] Gotta account for those, now that drinking's back!
[Henry] Oh good, I was really worried Joey would call Norman and get a "who are you?" [Jack] Norman DOES do that, but just because he thinks it's funny. [GM] That's possible, yeah, [Sammy] Oh my gosh. I believe it, is the thing. [GM] I do too, honestly... this might just be a thing that happens.
[GM] And the studio seems normal, and nobody got kidnapped in the night, not even Norman, and Henry's family is safe -- things are doing so good! [Jack] Nobody that we're currently in contact with got kidnapped in the night! [GM] That's true. [Jack] I'm not ruling out Bertrum getting kidnapped. [Jack] ...unrelated to the Carcosa nonsense, he just got kidnapped. [GM] That's what he gets for hanging out with the mob. [Jack] Sorry, I mean, "The Great Bertrum Piedmont." Have to use his full and official title. [GM] That's how you get him un-kidnapped, he just breaks through a wall to correct you. [Jack] *laughing* The Kool-Aid Bert................ [GM] The Great Kool-Aid Piedmont, [Jack] Now that's fanart I don't want to see.
[GM] Welcome back! We've been talking about the Great Bertrum Piedmont Kool-Aid-ing through a wall to correct you about his name. [Sammy] *startled wheezing* Okay, well it sounds like I've missed some really important developments!
[Jack] I think Jack would lean in the direction of like, they wanted to get in touch with him at the charity thing-- aaagh, that's technically not true. He's not the fast talk boy, he's not allowed to, [Sammy] I mean, he CAN fast talk, Henry does it all the time! [Jack] But does he succeed-- [Sammy] Henry's not the Fast Talk Boy but he keeps LYING anyway!!!
[Sammy] I feel like Jack is good at looking worried, and, caring about his fellow man, [Jack] I don't think he has to TRY to look worried??? [Sammy] I don't think Sammy contains these qualities. Sammy looks like he's here to arrest you. [GM] She's actually giving Sammy a concerned look, [Sammy] Sammy is HERE FOR THE PROTECTION MONEY.
[Jack] Well, this was lovely! Time to leave, because Sammy's already... vibrating against the door trying to clip through it.
[Sammy] Sammy's IMMEDIATELY going to tell him about this clarinet with the missing E flat extension. [Sammy] ....and then ALSO mention that he thinks maybe he's seen this guy before.
[Joey] Joey slightly fixes Henry's hair before they head in. [Sammy] (That's a little bit gay, but alright,) [Jack] (I think it's more than a little bit) [Joey] LISTEN, listen, Joey recognises-- [Jack] Linda's out of town! [Joey] --Joey recognises the neighbourhood,
[GM] The door gets opened pretty quickly, but the guy inside actually looks a little like he's suddenly out of his depth, because whatever he was expecting to happen is not what is happening. [Sammy] That's a common reaction to Joey Drew.
[Joey] I feel like it's not going to be a fast talk roll, actually, to make this guy feel like this is NOT a dangerous ask? So I'm gonna go with persuade instead. [GM] Are you going with the tack that you were concerned parties from the event? [Joey] I think, concerned party, perhaps leaning towards the notion that they hit it off well at the party, and -- I'm just turning it into a fast talk, [Joey] *trying again* I think Joey is leaning more into an idea that they are freshly met, but have similar interests? Or... possibly leaning into he's ...a friend of a friend and we're looking into it for that friend? [Sammy] Joey trying NOT to lie is really funny. "Oh well obviously I'll just say -- oh, I guess that's not true; I'll just -- WELL, that's not technically true either," [Joey] ADMITTEDLY, if this does turn into a fast talk roll, using the same roll it's now a BETTER SUCCESS, so, [Sammy] Just really funny how hard it is for Joey to just, HONESTLY REASSURE someone without inventing a whole narrative [Joey] I'M GOOD AT COMING UP WITH STORIES!! I'm not good at... fact-checking them first...
[Joey] Please, if you hear from him, or get any more information, please reach out to us as soon as possible, because the sooner we can prevent this, the better off he'll be -- y'know, that whole thing! [Joey] Do the most heartfelt, emotional connection he can... it's a little gay, but... [Sammy] I fully believe in Joey's ability to extoll the virtues of this man he's never met.
[Sammy] We can just check with Norman, have him peek out the window and see if it looks weird, [Joey] "Hey Norman, is your house in the right location?" [Jack] "Dunno why you called me outside just to tell me that you moved my house!"
[GM] Norman answers the door, and gives you guys a quizzical look. [Henry, out of character] :D Hey, did your house move? [Sammy, in-character] >:/ Did your house move?
[Sammy] Sammy will point out things Jack noticed as being different, as if he also noticed them. [GM] He'll turn back to you, and just kind of observe in a blase sort of way that he's apparently moved. [Jack] I love Norman,,,, [Joey] I love Norman's 89% Sanity score that never gets hit, apparently! [Jack] His sense of humour is actually an indefinite insanity. [Sammy] A constant coping mechanism, [Jack] Can't go insane when you already are!!
[Jack] Jack is, not happy about this, [GM, as Norman] He wonders if you'd like to come in for a housewarming, then.
[Sammy] Sammy's going to just catch her up on, the guy we're looking for read the play, [Sammy] Also, might be a guy that Sammy saw in New Orleans, and that might be why he knew the music?? [Sammy] ALSO, WEIRD THING with his clarinet, he doesn't have the E flat extension that you'd EXPECT HIM TO HAVE? [GM] I think Susie knows enough that she would say that's weird if he's playing seriously. [Jack] I was about to ask if this meant anything to these two-- [Joey] Norman is regaining sanity by watching Sammy rattle on about all this. [GM] He's probably chiming in opinions, too, that are completely not based in any actual musical knowledge -- [Henry] Norman just like "He's missing the E extension? Next he's gonna lose the, the F Shortener!" [GM] "What's the world coming to!" [Sammy] Sammy's giving him the most unamused look, and this is all Norman wanted. [GM] Yeah, yeah, this is how he keeps his sanity high. [Sammy] Just annoy Sammy Lawrence. That's the secret.
[Jack] Good to make sure things aren't going weirder over here-- which, uhhh, [Sammy] Which they are!!
[Sammy] That's smart, but that's also really spooky. Like okay, cool! The whole world has re-written this! Cool cool cool cool cool. [GM] He doesn't seem PLEASED about it, but he seems about normal. [Henry] He seems Norman about it. [Jack] Yeah, Normal Polk. [Jack] *cracking up* He shows up at work the next day and he's called "Normal Ponk." That's his name now.
[Jack] Reality's rewriting itself, wanna kiss about it? [Henry] Ah, Jack's okay again.
[Jack] If this was Fowler, then WHO WAS PHONE????
[GM] Well, okay, first things first, does Joey have Peter's number memorised? [Joey] HM. [Joey] ...I feel like he wouldn't admit it, but yes.
[Joey] Joey says he's going to call Peter back in a minute. And hangs up. [GM] You cut him off in the middle of some sort of response-- [Joey] Cool.
[Joey] He managed to break into a safe once by doing this! [Henry] "Break into" is... a bit of a strong phrasing. [GM] *mumbling* "Get locked inside of,"
[Joey] The main thing is, Do Not Go Alone, because if something happens to Peter... we have no way of tracking down the information that he has! We, we lose, all of his evidence! [Jack] .....and that's the ONLY thing, [Joey] Yup! [Henry] We ALSO lose his, HIM, [Joey] *mumbling* No, no that doesn't matter as much, as evidence, [Joey] It's clearly just, the fact that they lose all the benefits of having a reporter with ghost powers on their side, and NOT Peter himself, that is the issue! [Jack] iTS NOT LIKE HE CARES ABOUT YOU OR ANYTHING!!!
[Jack] *spongebob meme* You like Peter Sunstram, don't you, Joey?
[Joey] Both Henry and Sammy are the best able to get themselves out of a tough, fight-y situation, [Sammy] We can both punch, and Henry has magical power if something supernatural happens... [Joey] Also! Also, neither Joey nor Jack are there to be taken hostage and used against them! [Sammy] ... I think you're actually right. I hate to admit it, but I think you're right. [Jack] I can't wait for Jack to be kidnapped at the magic shop, you guys!
[Henry] I can't believe we're sending the two least talky boys off together to talk to the mob, [Joey] LISTEN. Henry and Sammy can go to the restaurant! Henry likes food! There we go! [GM] I can't believe Joey's just making sure Henry gets a nice meal after his shake-up earlier... [Sammy] I dunno, maybe Peter should come with us, just in ghost form. Henry can see him, potentially, [Jack] So Pete's body can... Not be where he left it when he gets back to it! [Sammy] ....hm, [Joey] *startled laughter* [Sammy] ....okay, nevermind,... [Jack] Just leave him in the car, what could go wrong! That's not disappeared MULITPLE TIMES!
[GM] Johnny Nero is of average height and build, with dark, slicked back hair, and a neatly trimmed moustache -- so not like any of the other people that you know! [GM] Wears expensive tailored suits, though. [Jack & Joey] *snickering* So, not like, any of the people you know-- [GM] It narrows it down a bit!! [Sammy] Alright, alright; bargain bin Joy Drew, got it.
[GM] You guys do get an offer to have food, while you're waiting. [Sammy] Yeah.... why not..... [Henry] Henry will, not,,, [Joey] *shocked* NO????? [Joey] *absolutely flabbergasted* FOOD!!!!! [Sammy] Gangsters don't usually poison you, they usually give you nice food and then they knock you out and throw you in the river. [Henry] WELL HENRY DOESNT KNOW THAT! [GM] He hasn't done speakeasies like Sammy has!!
[Sammy] I'm noticing that this guy actually looks really nervous, and isn't taking charge of the situation, [GM] He DOES have something that's probably a firearm in his pocket. [Sammy] Yeah, yeah, but, [Jack] It's his emotional support firearm!
[Sammy] Actually... Sammy WILL ask him if he saw it. [GM] Uh, [Sammy] Because he was RIGHT THERE looking at him. And I feel like, once you've seen it, and it does the weird thing where it gets in your head, you're not going to be confused what somebody's talking about if they ask you if you saw the yellow sign. You're going to know what that means. [GM] [GM] Are you going to say the thing...? [Sammy] Have You Seen The Yellow Sign?
[Henry] Henry is half-considering... [Sammy] *manically excited* DO YOU WANT TO TAKE THE THORN OUT OF THIS LION'S PAW, HENRY???
[Henry] You haven't been able to think straight since, have you? [GM] He kind of squints at you, because he's a gangster and he doesn't want to be like "D: YEAH, ITS BEEN REALLY ROUGH :(" [Joey] *laughs* Henry IMMEDIATELY knows this look, because Joey does this as well!
[Sammy] Push the roll!! Push push push! [Henry] *nervous* I DON'T KNOW IF I WANT TO PUSH IT,,, [Sammy] WE'RE ALREADY KIDNAPPED! WHAT ELSE CAN GO WRONG!
[Henry] We didn't get kidnapped, so it's you guys' turn! [Joey] We have the kidnapping charm with us, also known as "Jack Fain"! [Sammy] Oh I thought it was Peter Sunstram. [Sammy] [Sammy] DO THEY STACK?
[Jack] I can't wait for us to get to these spooky occult magic shops, and it's just like, "here's a bunch of overpriced tumbled gemstones and some incense!" [GM] The first one you go to is kind of that style. [Jack] Ideal! I hope they have a really tacky fake skull. [Joey] Joey is judging the whole place.
[Joey] WAIT, wait, they took you from the bar to the restaurant, and then you got the heckin' sign out of Nero's head, and he's not even gonna offer you a ride back to the bar?!? [Henry] I think what we got out of it is "not being kidnapped". [GM] JOEY is the one with the history of talking kidnappers into giving him rides, [Sammy] I do think it would be classier if he gave us a ride. I'm with Boo on this, it would be a classy gangster move. [Sammy] With that guy they kidnapped to do music for whoever's birthday party, they dropped him back off later, but, you know, it's fine, [Joey] Show your heckin' appreciation! *exasperated* THIS IS HOW WE CAN TELL HE'S AVERAGE!! [GM] Uh, lemme roll a quick like............. etiquette roll, [Sammy] Gangster Classiness, [GM] *rolls terribly* Yeah, I think he's frazzled enough -- this is gonna reflect poorly on him later. [Joey] Wow.
[Jack] Normal success for Jack! How many terrible tacky skulls do I see? [GM] Just SO many. [Sammy] This place won't help you, buddy. [Jack] I dunno, if you buy enough tacky skulls, maybe the guy won't wanna get near you. [Henry] Just throw tacky skulls at him! [Jack] A tacky skull a day keeps the pallid mask away!!
[GM] A more discerning occult collection than the other one. [Jack] The kind of place that has the more occult things like, in a locked cabinet instead of in a heap on the counter. [Sammy] In the bargain bin, [Jack] "Box of assorted random magic junk"? Yeah, I wanna rummage my hand in that, I'm not gonna get five curses, [Jack] *laughs* I'm not even AT the other place anymore and I'm still dunking on it! [Sammy] Jack's just saying these things to Joey to like, keep his spirits up. [Joey] It would be working,
[Sammy] I am curious if the restaurant is at the same address that we remember it being on. [GM] It is the same address! The name is different. [Jack] What's the new name? [GM] Lombardi's! It was Leon's. [Henry] ... some dude got his whole name changed, [Jack] Oh man, when do they do that to me, I want a legal name change! [Jack] Bringing the Yellow King into the world to get a free transition, [Sammy] No! Don't do it! He won't transition you into a human, it'll be..... something else,
[Henry] We're gonna run over the Pallid Mask. Vroom vroom motherfucker.
[GM] You do bump into something that is unyielding. [Jack] Oh no, Jack's car! [Jack] ... and also, whatever he hit, I guess!
[Joey] Joey is immediately flipping around to grab his cane; if the guy tries to get in the car, he's going to bash him in the face! and say GET OUT!! [Sammy] Well, it worked really well for Nero, so [Henry] The guy just got hit by a car and didn't move! I don't think the cane's gonna do much! [Jack] Especially not with Joey's weak noodle arms! [Joey] Yeah but he's upset!! That this guy is trying to get in the car! He was not invited in! [GM] ...make a CON roll. [Joey] [Joey] oKEY DOKEY,,,
[Sammy] Peter now is NOT the time to astral project [GM] Luckily he doesn't have that insanity currently, or he'd already be gone! [Jack] The car stops and Pete's ghost just flies through the windshield,
[Jack] I'm losing my mind... [GM] You are! 1d6 of it!
[GM] This is kind of wild magic zone, so you get some creative license. [Joey] Hmm. Hmm! Hmmmmmm... [Sammy] Oh no, you've given Joey Drew creative license,
[Joey] But when I picked out Jack's car, it's the first car that has full safety glass in it!! [Jack] [Jack] SO EVEN MORE EXPENSIVE TO REPLACE!!!
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auras-moonstone · 2 months
Note
Hey babe! I’m sure you get lots of requests but I’ve been reading all your stuff lately(so good omg and so addicting) but I was wondering if you could do enemies to lovers. With either Jack or ethan. Whatever comes to mind. Love ya!
⋅˚₊‧ ୨୧ ‧₊˚ ⋅ screaming and fighting and kissing in the rain
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ᡣ𐭩 word count: 1.2k
ᡣ𐭩 pairing: ethan landry x fem!reader
ᡣ𐭩 summary: ethan and y/n have a rivalry going on, until one day y/n explodes and ethan decides it’s time to change the core of their relationship.
ᡣ𐭩 contents/warnings: academic rivalry. enemies to lovers(ish). insecurities. fighting. screaming. making up (and out). a little bit of toxicity.
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y/n left the classroom practically fuming, with a smug-faced ethan trailing behind her. they had just been given their marks on their econ exam, and while y/n had passed, ethan had beaten her once again. by far.
it was exhausting. the boy was so smart, he didn’t even need to study. paying attention to class sufficed, he memorised everything and understood easily. y/n, on the other hand, wasn’t a natural. she had to stay hours on a chair trying to get the contents in her mind. and while she made an immense amount of effort, ethan always managed to come out in top of her.
she was insanely jealous of ethan. yes, maybe the few times she achieved higher marks than him she’d gloat a little bit (a lot). and yes, maybe the nonsense rivalry between them had started because of her and her bitterness but she couldn’t help but put up a fight.
some days y/n would feel bad about being the detonator of the stupid enmity, but today was definitely not one of those days.
“hey, y/n/n, it’s okay. econ is a very hard subject, not everyone understands it quite like i do.” ethan said, cockiness trying to be disguised with a very poorly-done empathetic tone.
y/n kept stomping, not even the rain could stop her from trying to get away from him.
“i could tutor you, if you’d like.” he continued, ignoring the way the fabric from her polo shirt was starting to get soaked.
“what i’d really like is if you’d leave me alone.”
“nope, this is my favorite part of feedback day. i love rubbing my high marks all over your face.” the tall boy smiled.
it was a crime that the cutest smile she’d ever seen belonged to the most insufferable man on earth. it only made her more furious. “get lost, landry.”
“we live in the same dorm building.” he laughed.
“well, take another route.”
“my god, you’re such a sore loser. i don’t say a thing when you gloat. which doesn’t get to happen very often, but still.” he rolled his eyes.
was he right? of course. was she going to admit he had a great point? no. was she going to keep unleashing her fury and jealousy? hell yes.
“yeah, well, once you get to beat mr. perfect, it’s an inevitable thing to do.”
his jaw tensed. “why are you so frustrating?” he screamed over the rain and thunders.
“why won’t you leave me alone?!” she screamed back, stopping in her tracks. “if i’m so frustrating why don’t you just stay away?” he stayed silent because he didn’t have a reason why. at least, none that he could say aloud without her running away. “huh, ethan? why do you keep sitting next to me even though the classroom is always empty when we arrive?!”
truth was, he was addicted to the rollercoaster of a relationship they both had. y/n always challenged him, made him feel alive. it wasn’t sane, it was completely intoxicating and wild and crazy, but it was his serotonin and he was addicted to it.
but this? up until today, it has been silly bragging and comebacks. this y/n seemed deranged, absolutely insane. he didn’t want her to truly hate him, because there was not a bone in ethan’s body that held any hatred towards her.
ethan admired her. he admired her perseverance, her intelligence, her witty, her humor. and even though it had never been towards him, he witnessed how kind she was to others. he wondered when it’d be his turn to have that part of y/n—the one that smiled genuinely, the one that joked, the one that laughed warmly.
it was clear the end of the stupid rivalry was in his hands because it would be an endless battle if it were for y/n, she was never going to let her armour down. he was ready for their relationship to change.
so with determined steps, ethan made his way towards her until he was so close that her chest almost touched his. “because i’m so fucking attracted to you. never thought i could feel this much about someone that hates my guts, but here i am.”
y/n’s eyes widened and searched in his face for any sign that he was messing with her. but she only found pleading brown eyes and eyebrows furrowed in anguish.
“and i’m going to kiss you right now, in risks of getting kneed in the balls, which is something you’d one hundred percent do.”
y/n might’ve laughed at that, but before she could do anything, ethan’s big hands grabbed her waist and pushed her towards him, closing the distance.
they stayed kissing in the rain for a while, not caring about the clothes sticking to their skins or the amount of water that fell down their faces. maybe their fights had been the perfect foreplay, because the kiss was unlike anything they’d experienced before. the rush that ran through their veins was intense and heart-racing.
“wow.” y/n said when they had to pull away for air. her fingers were still threading through his wet hair.
“yeah.” he agreed, letting out a laugh. “now that my kiss sort of sedated the beast within you—”
“fuck you.” she muttered, but this time there was nothing but playfulness in her tone.
“—let’s talk about what is going on inside your head, because we can’t keep on going like this.”
the walk back to her dorm was silent but the tension that always seemed to surround them was gone. their fingers were intertwined, and y/n leaned on ethan’s arm with his jacket around her shoulders.
“i’m sorry, ethan. i’m the one that started this stupidity.” y/n said as they settled on the couch.
“i never put a stop to it.” he pointed out.
“you were just playing the game i started. you never had bad intentions, but i fought with you because i resented you.”
“resented me? why? why did i do?” he asked, taken aback.
“no. nothing, not really. it’s just… i envied that you were so good at every class. i hated that i spent hours trying to make sense of what was in front of me while you understood everything so effortlessly. and the marks always hit me in the ego and insecurities.”
“and everytime i paraded my mark… i was just fuelling your anger.”
“well, yeah, but it’s not on you. it’s all me, in my head. during high school, everyone practically patted me in the head and congratulated me for my marks… and now, in college, i’m struggling like i’ve never before. it’s so horrible, i feel like a failure.”
ethan pulled her into his arms as she broke down. “you’re not a failure, y/n. college is very different from high school, and everyone struggles in their own way. no, i don’t have any problem when it comes to clases but socialising? trying to make friends? that’s where i struggle. it terrifies me.”
and now she hated herself more because it was at that moment that she realized she had been mean to someone who did not deserve it at all. “i’m so fucking sorry, ethan. you’re amazing and i’m sorry that i ever made you feel bad.”
“i’m sorry, too. i never meant it, but i still hurt you with my mocking. so let just call it even and move on, please.”
“we’re not even close to being even, but i want to move on, too. i want to get to know you. start over.” she said, brushing away the wet strands of hair that sticked to his forehead.
“but can we, maybe, please, not obviate the kiss? cause that was really fucking good and i want more of that.”
y/n laughed and hugged his neck. “that sounds perfect.”
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fadingsnow · 5 months
Note
i am frothing at the mouth i love your hotd content and only just found out you write for coriolanus now.
i love angst so this idea for young snow where she was previously in a relationship with festus or something but snow manipulates her into dating him instead (for the social position she has.) he starts to distance her from her friends like arachne and giving her excuses to why he’s spending so much time with lucy gray. reader is at the zoo talking to her tribute when arachne dies and is quite distraught. during the bombing he protects lucy gray and reader gets saved by ex boyfriend. idk how it would end but snow would probably just ghost her while he was in district 12
𓆙 new girl - CORIOLANUS SNOW x f! reader
summary and tw: the request, also i'm not sure why it posted before i added anything else! i think i accidently put it on the queue, divider credits : @cafekitsune 𓆙
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You huffed, picking at your food once again. All of this talk you had heard of Festus betraying you with.. Livia. You'd hear about it from Coriolanus, his eyes holding a pitiful look. Apparently, he had just wanted to let you know as Festus was parading his new girl around as if to mock you without your own knowledge. And you could feel your heart sink to the bottom of your stomach. Of course, there were rumours of his betrayal. But hearing it firsthand made it worse than anything you had thought.
Coriolanus had been there to help you. At first, you were suspicious. Who wouldn't be? I mean, you knew he was somewhat friends with Festus, but.. he was always somehow lingering wherever you went. But soon enough, you let him the little enclosed space you call your heart. He didn't judge you, and he helped you through everything. It wasn't much, but it was what you needed. So you took comfort in his presence.
Now that was before, but it was the 10th Hunger Games. Every person for themselves. That is what you told yourself at least, but you sometimes didn't believe yourself when you saw the rare grin accompanied on Coryo's face. The crease of his frown, or his smile. You didn't mind.
Soon, he became more and more.. possessive? You had to start calling off study dates with Arache, someone who Snow wasn't shy to tell you his displeasure of. You'd see how his lips pursed at times, how he clenched his fists whenever he felt he was losing control. How he glared daggers into people around him when he was upset. Sometimes, he would even throw fits. You weren't sure where it came from. Maybe it was the stress of the situation. Or maybe it was just an overreaction. You couldn't really place.
And then.. Arachne dies. You had been talking to your tribute, a small girl named Wovey. You knew she was sure to die, but you could make her last few days memorable.
"Eat the foo -" Your words stopped right in its track when you saw something happen in front of your eyes. Arachne's tribute had.. hurt her throat, to say the least. You were about to run over to her before you saw a familiar face going to help her. Strangely taking you away from the severity of the situation, you were enamoured by Coryo again.
But for some time after, your mind couldn't function right. Arachne was gone. No one was going to ever talk to you for hours and hours over nonsensical stuff and giggle over it. Why did you listen to Coryo and stay away from her for so long? She haunted you everywhere you went, her scent, her favourite foods to eat at the Academy. Coryo was somewhat sufficient on supporting you. You were there when he sang at her funeral. You could only bring yourself to not let tears fall from your eyes, being given a tight embrace by Coryo when he found you in the small gathering. You breathed in his clothes, your shakes of cries vibrating against his body. He soothed you, running his fingers up and down your shoulders.
His voice was low when he spoke to you that night, his breath fanning across your cheek. "I can't lose you too," he whispered before pulling back to look at you. When you met his gaze, all you could do was stare into his eyes and nod numbly. That day, you weren't sure if he was really referring to his past or you.
He held you tightly for so long.
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Days go by, but it's always Lucy Gray. Lucy Gray is the wedge in your relationship. She always has to be there when you haven't even met the girl personally.
You grabbed his hand, intertwining yours, "Can you not see it? Day and night, Lucy Gray plagues your mind! She is like a bird perched on MY porch that will never leave!" You breathed, speaking loud to get your words out.
"Lucy Gray is nothing but my tribute. She is what will help me win. We will win because of her. You will do well to remember that." He murmured harshly, taking his hand back.
"We? Since when was this a we situation?" You scoffed, holding your hand in your other now.
"Since I decided to care for you!" He yelled, his face seeming frantic after. He looked at you nervously before going to reach for you to comfort you.
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You looked around, someone was bombing the arena. Your hands shook as you tried to move around. You were done for, your whole life's work at the Academy. You knew you were never going to get your tribute to win the Hunger Games, but you still wanted a life after it. Wait- You had to go get Coryo-
You could barely think before rough arms collided against yours and pulled you away, you couldn't even look up to see who it was. You hoped it was Coriolanus.
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No, it wasn't. You looked up from the bed that was meant to hold you while you recover and saw Festus' face over you.
"How come you're not in the bed and I am?" You muttered, looking up at him.
His eyes widened slightly before composing himself and putting a hand on your arm softly, "It was a mistake, I'll see to it you won't get hurt anymore. You are no longer my responsibility."
You blinked owlishly up at him.
"Thank you, Festus. And just to let you know.. I am sorry for what happened."
His eyebrows furrowed before shaking his head. "Nevermind. Just focus on resting." He whispered before leaving you alone.
"May I ask one thing?"
"Sure."
"What happened to Coriolanus?"
"Oh, he went to save Lucy Gray. A bit brave, I suppose."
You in your anger had went to go find Coriolanus Snow. But when you looked for him, you found out he had been sent to District 12. Lucy Gray's district.
Weeks, weeks, weeks, and weeks, you had waited for a letter from Coryo. You didn't know a single thing that had happened to him, and he never told you.
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There was no way. You just saw Coriolanus Snow on the screen as the president.
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nejibaby · 1 year
Text
precursor
Pairing: Haitani Ran x Reader
Description: Haitani Ran just might be the most overprotective father.
Word count: 0.8k
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Once in a while Haitani Ran indulges in his simple pleasures in life — these being (1) sleeping for at least 15 hours, and (2) spending the day with his dear family.
Thus on his rare days off, an unofficial rule in the Haitani household is to not wake him up from his slumber. Simply because a well-rested Ran guarantees a better day.
However, on a certain Friday afternoon, what Ran doesn’t know is that his 18 hours of sleep would be a precursor to one of the most terrible days of his life.
So he smiles, stretches and almost rushes out of bed when he smells the freshly baked cookies you’ve made. And he grins when he hears his precious daughter giggling while you coo at her.
“Aren’t you two having too much fun without me?” Ran says with mirth as he enters the living room.
“Daddy!” Your daughter almost trips trying to reach Ran as quickly as possible.
He picks her up and spins her around as usual. Giggles immediately leave her mouth — an automatic response when she spends time with her father.
You watch with delight at their antics. And when he brings her back down to her chair, a smirk appears on your lips as you say, “Baby, why don’t you tell daddy what happened today?”
Your daughter perks up and begins to animatedly tell her father about all that has transpired in the previous hours at her school. Ran listens attentively and even matches her energy when he responds. She ends her narrative with her widest smile saying, “And when I was about to be picked up, a boy kissed me today!”
Ran splutters in shock. He shoots a glare at your direction when he hears you snicker.
“Wh-what did you say, darling? I don’t think I heard that right,” he asks your daughter.
“A boy kissed me today, daddy!” She giggles in glee, kicking her tiny feet in the air.
The look of horror on Ran’s face is comical and it takes everything in you to stop yourself from laughing. “Is he your boyfriend now, baby?” You tease.
“No! My baby does not have a boyfriend!” Ran answers your question in her stead.
“She’s our baby,” you correct.
“Not if you’re condoning this nonsense,” he mumbles.
“And she can speak for herself. Right, baby?”
“Mmh!" She nods as she munches on a cookie.
Ran pales and becomes rigid for half a minute and then suddenly he's standing up and leaving the room. You and your daughter are left dumbfounded by his actions but before you can even call him out, he's back, bringing a photo album with him.
He flips a couple of pages and points to your daughter's class picture last year. "Show daddy the boy who kissed you,” he says in a sickeningly sweet tone.
You’re left gaping at your husband, trying to wrap your head around his sudden interest with the boy.
“But daddy, he wasn’t my classmate last year. He just transferred a few months ago.”
Ran frowns. “Tell me his name then.”
You squint, finally realizing that he’s interrogating your daughter.
You turn to her, “No, baby. Don’t tell daddy his name.”
“Tell Uncle Rindou then,” Ran amends.
“Uncle Rinnie?” Your daughter repeats excitedly. “Is Uncle Rinnie coming?”
“Yes, baby. He’s on his way here as we speak. You can tell him all about the fuc— I mean, the boy who kissed you.”
You’re about to interject but your daughter responds faster, “I don’t know, daddy.” She crinkles her nose. “Uncle Rinnie still hasn’t given me the lollipop I wanted…”
“I’ll get it for you if you tell him,” Ran bribes her, which evidently works based on how giddy your daughter looks.
“Okay, that’s enough, Ran,” you shoot him a look, although it goes unnoticed as his hopeful eyes are on his daughter. “We need to talk.”
You’re dragging your husband out of the room but that doesn’t stop him from trying to get more information. “If you don’t want to tell Uncle Rindou, at least let Uncle Kakucho know!” He yells just as you both reach the door.
“What do you think you’re doing?” You raise a brow at him, putting your hands on your hips.
“What were you doing when it happened?”
“I’m just letting kids be kids.”
“Kids aren’t supposed to kiss!”
“And you shouldn’t be involved in Bonten, but I guess we can’t have everything we want,” you argue. “Now stop being a menace.”
“I wasn’t even being a menace! Just, you know… Uhm… curious.”
“Well then, stop.”
Ran huffs and then he pouts.
This fucker, you think. He’s utilizing his charms, knowing full well its effect on you.
“Whatever,” you yield. “Just don’t endanger a child over a silly kiss. Save that for when she gets her heart broken or something.”
Ran grins and salutes, “Okay, boss.”
He watches you walk away from him and try as he might, he can’t prevent the lovesick look he exhibits, knowing that he married the right one.
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feedback and reblogs are appreciated!
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hazz-a-bear · 3 months
Text
AS LONG AS I'M WITH YOU, wen junhui
♡⸝⸝ maybe you should have given Jun a little more time to prepare himself to meet your parents.
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.ᐟ fluff. established relationship. jun is a ball of anxiety. so many pet names. mention of emotional distress/anxiety. mention of reader bringing home a girl. very brief mention of homophobia ( only if you squint )
a/n: my first work to be posted on tumblr! I hope everyone likes this, don't hesitate to give me feedback
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"So you're one hundred per cent sure that what I got is enough? I feel like it's not. Oh yn, you could've let me get the tea set too!"
Jun whines from the passenger seat for the hundredth time. His mouth has been working overtime since the two had gotten in the car - questions, complaints and fusses leaving his mouth nonstop through the entire ride.
Approximately two weeks ago, on a random Tuesday night, you had casually thrown a question at Jun over dinner. "Mom called today. She wanted to have dinner since I hadn't visited them in a while. I was wondering if you wanted to go with me? They can finally meet you, Jun"
The simple question that came out of your somehow resulted in Jun choking on his next bite of rice.
If you'd thought Jun was overdramatic before (affectionately), you had definitely underestimated to what extent he would go after you had invited him to meet your parents.
The last two weeks had been hectic for Jun. As soon as he processed the invitation, he immediately made it his mission to get something - a first impression gift, he said - for your parents. When you firmly told him that he doesn't need to get anything, he looked at you like you just told him the Great Wall isn't in China. "Do you want your parents to hate me, yn? He had scoffed. "You weren't expecting me to just show up without anything, right? That's literally the easiest way to look bad in front of any parent"
Since then, Jun had been lurking on every single online website - hunting for household items with a concerningly deep determined look in his eyes. On Friday, he dragged you to a home appliance store nearby, immediately demanding your honest and brutal opinions on the porcelain tea sets on display. And that's when you admitted that maybe Junhui was a little more insane than you thought he was.
Surprisingly, you managed to convince Junhui to only stick to a couple of scented candles, incense sticks and coasters in the end. But it still didn't stop him from whining about how he still could've made a better impression with one of the tea sets he had been eyeing.
"Jun, sweetheart" You sigh, eyes set on the road ahead of you "There was no way I was gonna let you buy a whole ass tea set. Mom has plenty of sets at home, she doesn't need another one"
"Yn, I love you, but, the tea set isn't meant to be given as a function. I don't expect her to put it to use. It's more of a symbol of appreciation"
Damn your boyfriend and his ability to speak complete nonsense and somehow make it sound reasonable. "A symbol of appreciation? For what?"
"For letting me have their daughter, yn, obviously!" From the corner of your eye, you can see the way his arms are flailing around as he tries to argue with you. It's amusing, really - the way this got him all worked up and sweating like he's at dance practice.
"Respectfully, Jun, they didn't let you have me, you know?" You smirked, a teasing lilt to your voice. "They just didn't know and when they finally did, it was already too late. You were way too deep in love with me"
"You're right" Jun surprisingly agrees with you, making you look towards him with slightly raised eyebrows. Usually, he would have picked a fight. Arguing about how you're the one who fell first and the biggest simp in your relationship. So when he actually agrees with you without snapping back with a witty remark, you realize that his mind is preoccupied with the nervousness of the dinner with your parents more than you had realized.
"Jun?" You call softly to get his attention and wait till he replies with a hum. "Are you okay, love?"
Jun is silent in his seat. You take a quick glance at him to see him looking out the window, lips pulled under his teeth while he seems to be deep in thought. His hands are resting on his lap, fingers wringing each other in an attempt you recognize as him trying to calm himself down. Your eyebrows furrow in concern at the sight of Jun twitching in his seat, clearly anxious about this whole ordeal.
Looking in the rear mirror to see if you can slow down, you reach out to him with one of your hands - the other holding the steering wheel tighter. Jun almost jumps when he feels your cold hand settle on his before he laces his fingers with yours, his hold tight.
"Sorry," His voice is quiet, almost apologetic. "I'm just- I'm fidgety, cause, I'm nervous"
"Don't be sorry, baby, no" You assure him with a squeeze of his clammy hands. "It's okay if you're nervous, it's completely fine. Remember when you took me to meet your mom and dad? I was almost crying by the time we got there"
"Yeah, I remember" He sighs. "But I just- just can't help it, you know? What if they don't like me, yn? What if they think I'm not good enough- all sorts of what ifs"
You understood what he said, you really did.
When Junhui asked if you wanted to meet his family two months into your relationship, you had been anxious to the same extent - if not more. What was different was Jun had asked you almost a month in advance, giving you enough time to freak the fuck out about it, let it process, come to terms with it and finally get ready. When you think about it now, it makes you feel bad realizing you had only given Jun approximately two weeks to prepare himself for this.
"Junnie, I'm sorry if this is so sudden," You say, making him turn to you on a whim. "Fuck, I should've given you more time to get ready. I'm so sorry. I didn't mean for you to get anxious, Jun"
"No, no, yn. It's not your fault, baby" Jun is quick to reach over the console, a clammy hand coming up to press under her chin in an attempt of reassurance. "It was sudden, true but this was going to happen sooner or later, no? Meeting your parents? I'm just the normal amount of nervous, okay? Don't worry baby, you didn't do anything"
As if to emphasize his words, Jun brings your laced hands to his lips, pressing a kiss to the back of your palm and another one to your wrist. You relax a little into your seat, his words starting to make sense in your mind.
Soon, you're putting out the right turn signal before making a turn off the main road. You can feel Jun's hand tense around yours a bit more and you give him another squeeze of assurance. He watches out his window as you drive along the road that leads to your house. All the houses in the neighbourhood are gates, screaming sophistication at any guest that passes by. You know that compared to other neighbourhoods, yours is considered to be a bit more upper-class and rich. And Junhui is definitely enamoured by it.
"Yn, you actually grew up in a fancy neighbourhood" His mouth is almost hung open. "All of the houses have gates!"
You laugh at the excitement that takes over his features, the anxiety seemingly slipping away from him in the process. You can't help but take occasional glances at him as you continue to drive up ahead. It's only when you turn towards a clearing that with an already opened gate, he suddenly tenses again.
"Oh god," You can hear him mumble under his breath, both of his hands now coming to hold on to yours that rest on his lap. The gate opens to a paved driveway, large trees carefully sitting on both sides. You slowly pull inside and at the end of the long driveway, the house you once called home stands proudly.
The closer you get to the house, the fidgety Junhui gets. His knee is bouncing up and down in clear distress so you hold on to him a little tighter, reminding him that you're right there. He waits as you drive to the side of the house, stopping the car next to the garage which holds your dad's cars. You can almost feel the anxiety that bounces off of Junhui, circulating the car like a scent and it makes you sad, knowing he's this nervous about meeting your parents.
As soon as your hand leaves the steering wheel and pulls on the parking gear, Junhui is almost scrambling to your side of the car over the console and immediately hiding his face in your shoulder.
"I'm so scared" He's mumbling into your your skin once his face is pushed against your neck, shaky breath fanning over you warmly.
You bring up your other arm which isn't clutching Jun's to put around him before pulling his body towards you. It's a weird angle considering how he's almost leaning his entire upper body over the console of the car but neither of you could care less about the way the gear is pressing into his tummy in a way that is not comfortable. What matters right now is the fact that you're there to hold him while he freaks out about what will happen once he gets out of the car.
He sighs again, relaxing a little in your hold as you press your lips to his temple. "What if...what if they don't like me, yn? What do I-"
His words are unceremoniously cut off when you pull away by a little, only to press your lips against his in a quick manner. He shuts up then, closing his eyes and deepening the kiss, trying to drink in your entire being if you're offering. It's evident in the way he unconsciously tries to chase your lips with his when you go to pull away.
"Baby, no" You assure him in a hushed whisper, forehead resting against his temple. "They're not gonna hate you, I promise. They won't, darling"
The look on Jun's face remains the same, unconvinced and doubtful even though you put up the most certain voice you're able to. There's a slight crease in his eyebrows and the way his eyes fail to focus on yours says enough though - he's terrified.
"Baby" You croons, freeing your other hand from his before bringing them both up to his face.
Jun's cheeks are cold under your fingers, probably a result of the blasting AC in the car. Your hands must be cold as well if the way he flinches when they rest on his skin says something. Yet, his eyes slightly droop on the contact, almost leaning into the touch with a small smile that paints across his lips. It makes you smile too, the way he's so willing to lean into the warmth ( or the icy cold feel ) of your hands.
"They'll be nice, baby, I promise. Don't you think they'll at least try to be nice to the first boy I've ever brought home, hm? It's a new milestone"
His cheeks are immediately flushing at your words - the knowledge of him being the first to meet the parents settling something warm and fuzzy in his stomach. You smile to yourself as you see the mischievous little smile that stretches across his face.
"How do I trust you, huh?" He says with a slyness to her voice, looking up at you from the gaps in his lashes.
"Trust me about what?" You play along while your fingers brush away locks of brown stray hairs that fall across his forehead.
"When you say I'm the first boy to meet your family?" His usual playful smile is now etched into his face, making him look young and boyish. Now that he doesn't seem to be as worried as he was before, you realize he's up to no good. Jun is skilled in knowing just how to pull the strings and make you the right amount of annoyance at any given time. "Does that mean you've brought girls home, hm? What if you're just saying it to make me feel better?"
"Oh, jun, baby. If I had brought girls home, I would've gotten kicked out a long time ago, don't you think?" You chuckle despite the heaviness of the words that come out of your mouth. Jun smiles too, seeming to agree with you. "And trust me, you'd know why I haven't brought anyone home all this time once you meet them, okay?"
And just like that, Jun's face is crumping again in your hold before he's whining in a high voice while leaning away from you. "Yn, why would you say that? That sounds even scary"
You chuckle while Jun fake cries in his seat, suddenly ranting about how he would not hesitate to break down in actual tears if your family intimidates him enough. While he goes on and on about the miserable state he's in, you reach behind you and grab the bag of 'first impression gifts' Jun had brought.
When you got in the car earlier, you had jokingly pointed out how he's only doing this to suck up to your parents and kiss their ass. And Jun being dramatic as he is had dismissed you with a sassy flick of his wrist saying 'Yn, it's not kissing ass to bring something as a visitor. It's basic human decency. It's an unwritten rule of Asian households. You should know that!'
As soon as you grab the bag from the backseat, Jun is shuffling to take it from you, sticking his hand inside and mentally checking out a list of the things he's gotten to make sure he hasn't forgotten anything.
As you wait for Jun to finish, you turn off the car, pocketing your keys and wallet. Jun has finished his counting when you turn back towards him. He's leaning against the door on his side, bag resting on his lap and hands once again nervously twitching on top of it.
The look in his eyes is fond as he looks your way, but it doesn't take a genius to understand that it's only masking a lot of nervousness and unease behind them. His lower lip is caught between his teeth as he rapidly chews on it, purely out of habit. So you reach before carefully thumbing under his lips, trying to get him to stop.
"Take your time, Jun. There's no rush. We have all the time. Let me know when you're ready"
Junhui had always been naturally fidgety when it came to approaching new people and being introduced to new conditions. And even more so if it's related to your past that he hadn't been present in. Jun tends to care a lot about first impressions - always fussing over his appearance, his behaviour and his attention to detail. As much of an extrovert as he is, it's always quite hard for him to take the first step towards instant socializing.
In disparity, you're the one who's capable of grounding him whenever it happens. Even though he's freaking out of his mind, as long as he's able to feel the familiar sense of your fingers lacing his, nudging the right amount of pressure against his skin, he's good to go. So even now, as he's trying to regulate his breathing and try not to scream in dread, the feeling of your lips pressing into his cheek in the form of security, assurance and a promise - it's enough to hold him from falling apart.
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nobodyfamousposts · 1 year
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why is everyone always hyping up Ms. Mendeleev as this amazing teacher who takes no bull when she really isn’t? in evil illustrator, Mendeleev sees Chloe picking on Nathaniel and even physically rips his sketch book out of his hands and embarrasses him in front of everyone. but not only is Mendeleev more focused on him drawing in class, she only scolds Chloe but doesn’t punish her for being disruptive. in Marinette’s flashback, when Marinette arrives to class late looking downtrodden, she yells at her in front of everyone instead of waiting until the end of class to talk to Marinette privately. she doesn’t ask her what’s wrong, she doesn’t shut down Chloe’s offensive comments about “looking more depressed than usual” and “she wants to design clothes but can’t keep hers clean”, and she yells at Marinette for accusing Chloe of putting paint on her seat by stating that she had no basis to do so. this woman sure does yell a lot doesn’t she? Mendeleev has zero empathy for her students and has no business being a teacher. if we’re going to call out Damocles and Bustier, she deserves a call out as well.
No no, you have a point. I find I want to argue with you because I'm one of those who likes Mendeleiev substantially more compared to the other teachers, but that's just it: when compared to the other teachers.
Other than Damocles as the Principal, Mendeleiv is one of only three teachers we've been introduced to in the whole of the series. Well, until the Art teacher in season three, but even he has the same issues as Bustier and Damocles of admonishing the other students while saying nothing against Chloe.
Chloe issues aside, Bustier's teaching methods are "nice", but notably useless and not age appropriate. She was shown teaching the class about a fairy tale, and not even a specific one. Just about how a Prince saves a Princess with a kiss, with "true love" being the lesson rather than the literary implications or analysis in what I can only assume is a literature class.
Then there's D'Argencourt, and do I really need to get into this guy?
So I think part of the reason here is that of the very few teachers we've gotten any focus on, Mendeleiev is the only one who has actually ACTED like a teacher. Not the nicest teacher, no, but at least A teacher.
She was admittedly harsh in how she went about things with her students, but she had valid points and reasoning behind what she did.
Nathaniel in Evilustrator was drawing in science class, a subject he is struggling in.
Rose was spraying perfume in class without consideration to the hazards it could cause. Someone could have a health issue. Plus...y'know...the canon problem of the perfume being VERY FLAMMABLE.
And she's the only teacher who has at any point at least scolded Chloe for her behavior. Which given how everyone seems to bend over backwards to appease her or admonish her victims, that's saying something.
Plus out of all the school staff who have been akumatized, Mendeleiev had the most sympathetic reason. Then there's her aborted storyline in the New York Special. So she comes off as a teacher who wants to be liked and do right by her students, even if her way of going about her interactions seems harsh, and I think that's the aspect that the fans have taken notice of.
It stands to reason we've all had a teacher like her in our lives. Strict. No nonsense. Didn't let us get away with anything. And it also stands to reason that having that teacher in real life made us dread that class.
So yes, Mendeleiev is no saint. But she at least IS a teacher who ACTS like a teacher. A strict teacher who takes no excuses and seems more impartial (at least when compared with Damocles and Bustier who make it quite obvious they're under Chloe's thumb even if it's in different ways and for different reasons). She could do with some education on empathy and communicating with her students. But she's still at least doing her job as an educator to teach them.
At least until the writers ruin her just like they ruin everything else because they saw what the fandom came up with and decided we can't have nice things.
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captainpulisic · 1 year
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dont call me baby - m. mount
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feedback is appreciated gif credits to owner word count : 1.4k
by the time ben has the bright idea to call you, mason is absolutely wasted. music can be heard down the street and the house might explode with how many people are packed in.  
mason can’t stop laughing at nothing in particular, the alcohol doing a number on him. he’s halfway pouring himself another shot before ben snatches it from him. ignoring the childish protest from his friend, he guides him outside for some much needed fresh air. “i think we’ve had enough, yeah?”
ben makes sure mason is settled on the curb of the sidewalk before dialing your number, begrudgingly taking the role of babysitter.  
“uh y/n, are you busy?”
“not really, everything okay?” you have to hold the phone away from your ear, trying not to get ear damage from the loud music bleeding out in the background.
“no, yeah everything is good. i just think its best if you come get mase, he’s pretty shitfaced.”
over the receiver, you hear masons slurring, “who are you on the phone with? come sit with me!” you feel silly, just hearing his voice makes your heart skip a beat. 
“its y/n”
“y/n? y/n! where is she?” you can hear the smile in his tone and it makes you weak in the knees. if only you could see how pathetically sweet he looks, eyes looking for you in every direction. 
ben must have given mason the phone because his voice is suddenly clearer than ever. “y/n?”
“everything okay, love? having fun?”
“i think so, i said i wasn’t going to drink that much but kai kicked my ass in beer pong… twice.” he mumbles the last part, quietly. “are you almost here? i need you, i miss you.”
“i miss you too, sweet boy.” you swear you can’t love him anymore than you do right now. he always gets so soft and lovey when he’s drunk, it’s your favorite version of him. “want me to take you home?”
“what a scandalous proposition, at least buy me dinner before asking me to go home with you!” he laughs at his own joke for a solid minute.
“i’ll buy you all the dinners you want, okay? i’ll be there soon.” 
you exchange ‘i love yous’ and mason hands the phone back to ben, having watched the whole conversation with amusement. and the amusement only grows when mason lets himself fall back onto the patch of sidewalk grass. he hears mason ramble about something along the lines of ‘she wants to take me home’.
“hurry, for his own good.”
when you finally do arrive, you find mason passed out on bens shoulder. quickly getting off the car, you approach them and kneel right in front of them. mason is still mumbling nonsense of ‘her’ and ‘home’, eyes glazed and sleepy. you boop his nose, affectionately. he looks extra beautiful with the streetlight illuminating his features. “hello there, handsome. let’s get out of here, yeah?”
nothing could’ve prepared you for the serious look mason gave you as his gaze landed on you. no smiles, no laughing. in an annoyed tone, “no thanks, please leave me alone.”
ben and you share a confused look. you force yourself to swallow the sadness that was creeping up in you. mason has never been so cold with you, always wanting to work out arguments instead of fighting. what could you have done to him in that fifteen minute drive to warrant such a cold attitude? you reach for his hand, “im sorry, mase? did i do something wrong?”
“i said to leave me alone.” he retracts his hand at lighting speed, making your heart feel worse than it ever has. he’s certainly never done that before. “my girlfriend is on her way and i don’t think she’ll appreciate you putting the moves on me.”
you raise an eyebrow, “mason, what are you on about?” 
“just leave.” 
you really didn’t understand what was going on. “baby, whats going on?”
“do not call me baby, only my girlfriend can do that.”
oh my, your mood does a complete 180 and now you really can’t contain your laugh. your poor boyfriend is drunker than you thought. Keeping the charade up, you reach to ruffle his hair “i’m so sorry, i had no idea you had a girlfriend.”
his reflexes are quick, trying to dodge your affectionate gestures. “you should be sorry. please- hey stop that, i know y/n will definitely get mad if she sees you playing with my hair. only she’s allowed to do that.” not even waiting for your response, he turns to ben. “is y/n almost here? i want her.”
this time, you and ben share an amused look. ben pats his back,  “she just called, said she’s almost here.”
hearing that, masons stern glare is targeted at you again. he slurs, “now you really do have to leave. y/n might be nice but she will fight you if she sees you trying to get into my pants. leave before i tell her you tried calling me baby.”
without another word, you get up and walk behind your car, hidden from masons view. giving him a couple seconds to believe that this “other girl” left, you prepare to come out of your hiding spot. when you finally do reappear, you walk up to him again, hoping the ruse will work. acting as if this is the first time you’re seeing him tonight, you kneel down again and kiss his cheek. realizing that it’s really you this time, masons entire mood shifts. he tries and fails to get up, trying to grasp your hand. “y/n!”
“hey pretty boy!” ruffling his hair, this time he leans into it. “you’re okay?”
“yeah, just a little drunk and sleepy. i really want you to take me home, not sexually just literally.”
“thats what i’m here for, baby.”
as if the word triggers some memory he was trying hard to repress, mason lets out a gasp. “y/n! you’ll never believe what just happened.”
“hmm?”
“some girl tried touching my hair and she was calling me baby and getting too close to me. i told her i had a girlfriend but she wouldn’t listen. i was properly mad but i told her you’d fight her if she stuck around.”
“oh, yeah? was she pretty? did you like her?” you know you shouldn’t take advantage of him in this state but it was just too fun to tease drunk mason. 
“no! i didn’t even look at her! i was just waiting for you to show up and trying my best to ignore her. i swear it!”
at this, ben snorted and helped you lift mason up. latching on to you, he sways you both around, promising he didn’t even pay attention to that other girl. you say your goodbyes to ben after making sure mason is properly in the car. 
halfway on the drive, mason speaks up. “where were you tonight? you should’ve come along and protected me from scary girls.”
you laugh at this.
“whats so funny?”
“nothing. just thought of me following you around, making sure no other girl touches your pretty hair.”
soon enough, you’re back home and helping him stumble in through the front door. getting him up the stairs should earn you a gold medal, setting aside the fact that he only almost slipped twice. entering your shared bedroom, you gently sit him down on the bed and begin to undress him. he hums in content when he is left in only his boxers and an old shirt, quickly being tucked in the covers by you. even in his state, he wants to tell you how much he appreciates you, how you’re his whole world.  “i love you, y/n.”
“i love you, sweet boy.” you give him a quick peck on his stubbled cheek, before changing out of your clothes and climbing into bed alongside him. immediately, he pulls you to him, nestling his face into the crook of your neck. this is heaven to you, feeling his warm touch all over you. 
you kiss him one more time, “go to sleep, love. you had a long night.”
“but i’m not even tired!” he whines, stifling a yawn.
“yes you are, mase.” lifting your hand to his hair, you begin to play with it in hopes that it lulls him to sleep. “it’s okay, i’ll stay up for a bit if you need anything.”
mason doesn’t even hear the last part of your sentence, already lost in his dreams of you.
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captain039 · 8 months
Text
Souls coming together
Ascended Vampire Duke!Astarion x human!reader
(Intertwined with a mortal continuation read part one here)
Warnings: Olden times, age gap, lots of feels, angst, working through trauma, tension, sexual, oral f-receiving, marriage, Astarions trauma and issues, body shaming, harassment, anxiety’s and depression, lotta issues xD,
(Should I make a Wyll story like this?)
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The social season was continuing on, lords and lady’s were finding their matches and spending quality time with their matches as their bonds strengthened, or depleted. Seems this season was up and down for most of the lady’s, whatever was in the air was toxic.
You’d had a total of five dances with the duke after his ‘proposal’ you felt like he was still a mystery though. You knew of his confliction though, his vampirism, his emotional side, his non-talkative side, his dick head side and you still knew nothing. He thankfully hasn’t given you any midnight visits in your room again, though the only time you spent together was dinner or at a party. At dinner he would put on a perfect act, smile and speak about his trades and life that you felt like he made up. When asked about his parents you felt his anxiety’s like your own, before he’d cover it with a story you didn’t believe one bit. You hated his perfect act, not when you’ve seen him so broken and he’s seen you so broken, maybe it’d all been for naught.
There was yet another party tonight, you hated it even more now you were dancing with the duke. People would whisper about you, they never said anything nice. They’d say you were just looking for attention, that you were just another bed warmer, seeking high company because you looked the way you did. It all hurt, their words stung you like bees. You weren’t right for the duke, not in looks, personality, anything really, you were opposites. When the duke would initiate a dance you disliked it, hated how the people talked, the older lady’s whispering, giggling or glaring. You would stare at his chest or the floor, you’d try to focus on his scent, his coolness, but it never worked. The whispers felt like loud laughter and snarky comments echoing in your mind, their looks were enough to send you to your knees had you not been held up, and all the while you felt like the duke never noticed, or didn’t care, after all he was ‘stuck with you’.
This party felt worse than the rest, it was clear now who was getting with who, what matches worked and what ones didn’t, gossip flying around like flys to food. Your family had suffered also, whispers about them led your mother to be embarrassed and ashamed while your father tried to hold it all together and talk such gossip away, but lady’s were lady’s.
You stood by Jen and Karlach sipping the sparkling fruit juice that was on the table. You didn’t see or sense the duke tonight and for some reason you felt happy about it, relieved. Jen and Karlach were talking while you simply listened before you saw Duke Ravengard coming over.
“Lady’s” he greeted with a smile, the omega lady Lila on his arms smiling also.
“Duke Ravengard” Jen bowed respectfully as did Karlach before he looked to you. You smiled at the couple, greeting them also.
“So has there been a proposal yet?” Jen said cheekily with a slight smirk making the poor omega flush embarrassed and Wyll chuckle nervously.
“Not yet” he said.
“Soon hopefully” Lady Lila said and you nodded smiling, but found a bittersweet jealousy lodged in your mind.
“I was just coming over if you’d like a dance, Lady Y/n, Duke Ancunin doesn’t seem to be here” Wyll said with a frown glancing over the crowd.
“Oh, no that’s highly inappropriate-“ you nodded to Lady Lila who smiled brightly shaking her head.
“Nonsense I do not mind, besides I need a drink” she said as she let Wylls arm go and pushed his hand out to you.
“Be my guest” she chuckled and you gulped, but nodded. You to the dukes hand feeling the familiar warmth. A country song began to play and the dance was more upbeat than the last as you began. You felt the stared the murmurs, going in a circle you heard some of their words.
“Stealing an already taken duke? Gods”
“Who does she think she is?”
“Like the duke would ever willingly dance with her, her family probably paid him”
“Looking like that? Most certainly had some agreement”
“Thought she was warming Duke Ancunin bed”
You stopped when the comments became too much, tears in your eyes as you rushed out the home, Duke Ravengard calling to you.
You ran into the gardens and sobbed, leaning against the small garden shed. You cried softly hanging your head in shame.
“Lady-“ you heard Duke Ravengard and looked up seeing him. He spotted you and you took off again, gods why was he out here?
“Gods go away!” You said as he followed you a frown on his face.
“Can’t you hear them?!” You snapped as he looked to you.
“It was a simple dance” he said and you scoffed.
“Duke Ravengard” you felt your body shudder at the sound of your vampire mate, he wore a black and red suit with silver embroidery.
“Duke Ancunin” Wyll nodded.
“Is something the matter?” Duke Ancunin looked to you as you spoke and you sighed.
“Alone again in the garden with two men! Truely I will be more to talk about, please, just go” you said sagging. Duke Ravengard nodded with a sad look on his face and left while your vampire mate stayed.
“What has happened?” He asked walking closer making you tense.
“Did you not hear a word I just said?” You asked.
“I did, however you are in distress, your scent is like rotten cakes and you’re trembling” he said glancing over you as he stood in front of you.
“Now, tell me what happened” he said eyes gazing at you. You cursed him silently and looked away, praying nobody would come.
“Silly womanly things you shouldn’t concern yourself with” you huffed arms crossing and resting by your stomach. He took a small breath, like he was sniffing.
“You’re not on your cycle or due” he said and you felt your cheeks burn.
“You don’t know that!” You said embarrassed.
“I would smell your slick, the change in your scent” he grinned lightly and you glared.
“That doesn’t matter, that’s not what I’m talking about either! Gods!” You groaned almost wanting to stomp your foot.
“You’re a man, a wealthy man you have no worries, now please leave before someone comes and decides to gossip more!” You huffed feeling your shoulders sag.
“What are they speaking about? You?” He asked head tilted and you stared at him, was he interested? Now?!
“You care now?” You blurted before you instantly regretted it and saw hurt flash across his face.
“Astar- Duke Ancunin please leave” you said gesturing to the exit as he narrowed his eyes.
“Why must you be so stubborn?” He tsked and you glared.
“Why must you be such an asshole?” You put your hands on your hips and gave him a look. He kept your gaze and you almost cracked till he chuckled lightly.
“Cheeky little pup” he said and you felt your cheeks go hot again.
“Perhaps we should talk tonight, after this party?” He said a new seriousness in his tone, an unknown look in his face also.
“I- alright” you sighed.
“After the party how?” You asked confused and he smiled.
“A late night visit” he simply said beginning to walk away leaving you with your mouth hung open.
Next part ->
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lorata · 14 days
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any particular ideas about the victors and empathy? like are there any that are low/no empathy, or any that are hyperempathetic? it would be interesting to see how empathy or lack thereof would impact their experiences/images both before, during, and after their games (even if panem probably doesn't have a very good understanding of what that entails from a psychology perspective lol)
a fun thing is that both Selene and Petra are low/no empathy, which makes them a fascinating pair. Petra knows she's missing something early and so outsources her sense of right & wrong to The Rules while Selene just does not care and this is a source of conflict for the two of them quite often.
Selene bases her morality around You Are Annoying Me, Personally whereas Petra's is You Have Broken The Rules This Is Bad And Unfair And Wrong which is why they drive each other up the wall
at their first kill tests Selene doesn't feel guilty. she vaguely thinks she should? but she doesn't, and they're here to kill, so, oh well. Petra asks her victim what she did, learns she did something bad, and is like, all right then, I'm good. they have a chat after Selene's about how neither felt bad and it's the one time they're both weirdly sympatico
both Selene and Petra have images that are slightly ... off/wild/feral, in no small part due to this. Selene they have to constantly remind her to pull it back or she'll go full villain (ha ha OH WELL given that she kills her district partner immediately but Misha knows). Petra's original was a bit more on the like ..... off-putting aloof killer vibe, similar to Clove, but with the maces she never got to pull that out so she had to go for the nymphomaniac over the top angle instead.
post-Games it's easy to keep things from Petra re: the state of the world until things explode because she just doesn't think about it. she has enough to deal with re: her own healing and constantly getting re-traumatized and all that nonsense that she doesn't have the mental energy to put towards things like oh what is it like for the districts or the other victors or is the only person who's nice to me actually doing this as part of a giant machiavellian scheme. it all falls apart in canon divergence once she has time to really sit and wrestle with those questions? but boy it takes some time and work and the others (particularly the younger ones) have some choice words for her in the meantime
Callista is also very low empathy, this (ahem) very clearly factored into her image & strategy. She does not care about the other districts and she says what she wants and if you get offended that's on you. Now mind you, while Calli has low empathy and her circle is small, IF you are inside that circle her compassion level is extremely high. Calli knows that Nero is hurting and she wants to do many, many murders on his behalf. She is very angry that she cannot. Ditto with her tributes, most of whom are similarly villainized by the narrative which is part of the reason she keeps choosing them anyway. In the AUs where she does manage to land either Creed or Alec she doesn't get what they're feeling half the time but she will help them regardless and god help anyone who tries to stand between them.
on the flip side we have Devon and Alec, who are both on the hyper-empathy end of things. Devon is able to control and use his fairly well, both in the Games and beyond; Alec has much more trauma and tends to be paralyzed by it for a lot longer before finally managing to work through things as an adult. part of Alec's problem is being unable to make his own decisions or justify his emotions
ironically Claudius is also very high on empathy but has no idea for a long time given that his specific cocktail of trauma and rage responses resulted in him lashing out and hurting people, so his whole "i'm a monster" thing dug in pretty deep and he withdraws. post-games though he can't help it and it lands him in trouble fairly quickly since he can't stop THINKING about other people and it sends him straight to treason town before he's even finished his victory tour, lol. post-canon divergence he winds up being like ... a teen counsellor for ex-centre kids which is the last thing he thought he'd be doing, but there you go. funny enough Eibhlin is the first person to tell him that he's high empathy and he doesn't believe her. but one of the reasons he's so good at 'mentoring' Selene is his ability to get inside her head before she even knows her own feelings really
in general while they don't have official vocab for it the Centre definitely IDs kids who have high empathy and/or compassion and has ways to decentralize that, whether it's giving them a cause or comfort in the rules or helping to carefully dissociate what they do from who they are. for the kids on the other end it's more a question of managing that line so they don't go too far.
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ghostlykeyes · 1 year
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Hihi! May i request power and denji w/ a shy s/o? Thank you <3
You're very welcome! 🖤
Denji
Denji thinks it's absolutely adorable that you're shy. Every time you all-but-shrink behind his shoulder in a crowded room his heart speeds up a little in his chest. He won't make a big deal out of it, especially if you see your shy nature as a flaw, but sometimes he can't resist mumbling a "God, you're so cute" against your ear if you lean in to him, whispering your thoughts so that only he can hear.
Denji has no issue speaking for you, if that's what you want. Tell him what you want at a restaurant, and he'll unflinchingly order for you (most of the time, he asks for an extra dessert, even if you didn't say you wanted one--because fuck it, every day's better with some sweets). Hold a ringing phone out to him and he instantly knows he's supposed to answer for you. Someone tries to strike up a conversation in line at the grocery store or next to you on the subway? Don't worry, Denji's right there to take the heat off you.
Despite this, Denji still encourages you to speak up for what you want or need. Whenever you manage to push past your shyness and assert yourself, he always congratulates you afterwards, no matter how small your act may have been. "Hey," he offers you a lopsided smile, "When you told your roommate to start doin' their own dishes? Badass. Ya did good!" He completely means it, too! He's beaming with pride whenever you push past your shyness.
He knows you need some extra support, so Denji's on you like glue at social events. If it's something more casual, like a hangout with friends, he keeps his arms wound around your waist in a permanent hug, or pulls you down to lounge in his lap while you socialize. Anything more formal sees his hand locked through yours. He rubs his thumb reassuringly against your knuckles if he senses you're getting a bit nervous or uncomfortable. While the PDA might fluster you a bit, especially because he's openly showing you love in a way that tends to draw attention, he reasons that the reassurance you get from his gentle, encouraging touch helps you feel more secure.
If he can tell you're obsessing about what you said or how you acted in any given situation, Denji encourages you by pointing out just how weird people are. "Don't worry too much about it, cutie," he reassures, ruffling your hair. "People are really freaks...I don't know what to do around 'em either, most of the time. Trick is to just not let it bug ya."
Though he's not one to tease (much), Denji does love to fluster you with constant compliments. He knows your shy nature means that professing his love will put an adorable blush on those cheeks of yours. He loves to tell you how your smile makes his chest feel all tight and tingly, or that hearing your laugh makes his whole day better. When you giggle shyly and hide your blushing face, he feels a swell of pride that he managed to get such a cute reaction out of you.
Power
Power tries to understand, she really does, but for the life of her she can't figure out why you're shy. After all, what does a smart, attractive, funny, caring person like yourself have to be nervous about? Especially around a bunch of puny humans! (If you protest and tell her that you're also a puny human, she just scoffs. "Nonsense," she proclaims, "You are in a league all your own! 'Tis obvious!") Even if she doesn't get it, though, she does her best to be supportive.
Power will absolutely speak up for you, which is nice, but she sometimes gets what you wanted to say hopelessly scrambled up, which is...less nice. You need to be very clear with what you want if you'd like her to relay it. Otherwise, you might end up with your friends thinking you said their Saturday night plans were foolish or your boss fuming that you want to quit without notice. She'll always rectify the situation if she accidentally lands you in hot water by speaking for you and saying the wrong thing, but damnit if you haven't received a handful of angry phone calls from people convinced you told your girlfriend to go insult them. (Power, even if she fixes the mess, is never sorry. Any misunderstandings she creates, she simply shrugs and blames on 'fickle, obscure human communication'.)
If there's one thing Power's good at, it's getting the attention of everyone in the room. When you're together in public, though, she does her best to dial her over-the-top personality down. She hates seeing you nervous, so even if it's extremely difficult for her to lower her volume and stop manhandling Denji, Aki, or you, Power attempts to control her antics. She expects her efforts to be rewarded with a generous amount of kisses, of course.
Bless her heart, Power wants to help you any way she can, but she just doesn't get humans sometimes. One of the better ways she helps you feel more comfortable is by draping her jacket over your shoulders, surrounding you with skin-warmed, comforting fabric. It smells like her and is just big enough to make you feel guarded, protected. One of the worst ways she tries to help you, though? Threatening everyone in the room. "You'd better make my darling comfortable," she places her hands on her hips and bares her fangs in a threatening grin, "or I shall make you regret ever talking to them in the first place!" Thankfully, she doesn't do the latter anymore if you ask her to stop...not in front of you, anyway.
If you just don't want to be around people, that's totally okay with Power. In fact, she prefers hanging out with just you! She'll drag you all over the place for two-person activities. Power thinks it's much more fun holding your hand as you throw bread crumbs at ducks, or ride the Yokohama ferris wheel, or monopolize the swing set in an empty playground. She'll take that over mingling with puny, insufferable humans any day.
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the-fallen-blue · 9 months
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Ok so of all the things about Baldur’s Gate that everyone keeps saying are amazing, let me put this one out there, because this is a thing I’ve been yelling about for easily a decade:
The voice actors know what they’re saying.
Like, here’s the usual flow for a voice actor in a major, triple-A rpg like, say, Mass Effect. The team pulls and prints a list of every line in the game for a specific character, and only those lines, and that “script” is handed to a voice actor. If there are weird alien words, someone might have thought to add a pronunciation guide. And that’s it. That’s all they get.
So you end up with a game where three different characters pronounce the same name in three different ways. You end up with a game where a character says “A bottle of [space drink] for whoever bags the most bad guys!” and another one says “that’s a sucker bet, you drank the last of the [space drink] last night (emphasis on space drink, like, you consumed a space buff so you’ll obviously win)” instead of “you drank the last of the [space drink] last night! (emphasis on the fact that it’s gone, and therefore there’s nothing to win).” You end up with a game where a character says “no one has thanked me” as though no thanks are being given to anyone, when the line should have been “no one has thanked me” because the entire point of that line is that everyone else except that character has just been thanked, and pointing that imbalance out is core to the scene. When a voice actor puts the wrong emphasis on a sentence, it changes the whole meaning, and when a voice actor has no context, it is inevitable that they will sometimes pick the wrong emphasis!
And I don’t know what Larian is doing backstage, but in however many thousand lines of dialog, I have not found even one of those yet.
In fact, very early in the game, there is a moment where the narrator is called upon to say a single word. One word. No surrounding sentence. No contextual dialog whatsoever. That word is “perfect.”
You read that as “PER-fect,” didn’t you? The adjective? Of course you did. That’s the natural reading. Literally any native English speaker, seeing that word in isolation, would automatically assume it was the adjective. 99% of the time, that’s what those letters mean.
The word was actually “perFECT,” the verb. “To improve a thing to its best form.”
And she gets it right.
Because someone told her what the fuck she was supposed to be saying.
Whatever else nonsense the industry does and does not take from this game’s production, I really hope “giving your poor VAs some godforsaken context improves the game” manages to sink into the brain of even one single other producer, somewhere.
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emilykaldwen · 2 months
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The Maiden and the Drowning Boy | Aegon x OC | Chapter One
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Rating: Explicit Ships: Aegon II Targaryen x Abrogail Strong (Lyonel Strong's Daughter), Jacaerys Velaryon x Helaena Targaryen Summary: As the kingdom teeters on the edge of chaos, Alicent Hightower swaps the pieces on the board: Aegon will marry Abrogail Strong, Larys’ younger sister and heir to Harrenhal. Caught in the web of intrigue and political machinations, the pair must figure out where their loyalties lie, and what they mean to one another.
Tropes: Childhood Sweethearts/Friends to Lovers, Generational Trauma and Cycles of Abuse, It's All About the Character Development, Unreliable Narrators, Multi-POV, Canon Divergent, Bisexual Aegon II Targaryen, Book/Show Mash Up, Fix-It Of Sorts, Stopping the Cycle of Abuse before it gets us all killed, Team Neutral, fairy tale vibes meets victorian medievalism meets grrm
no tag list. please follow @emkald-fic and turn on post notifications for updates or subscribe on AO3
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Author's Note: After a lot of encouragement, I will be posting chapters in their entirety here and on AO3. Many many huge thanks to @acrossthesestars for being my co-pilot, and for holding my hand through writing this story. Thank you to everyone who has reblogged and commented. Your words mean the world to me.
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CHAPTER ONE - THE WEIGHT THAT BROUGHT US HERE
Alicent watched the lords of the council settle into their seats, placing their markers in the proper place. Lord Tyland Lannister took his seat at the opposite end of the magnificent table, Lord Lyman Beesbury to his right. Maester Mellos and then Lord Larys at her own left hand. Jasper Wylde sat beside her father’s usual place at the right hand. The power of the realm all concentrated right in this room. They prayed to the Crone for guidance and wisdom at the beginning of every meeting, a practice that had thankfully not reached the ears of the king, as he’d been cloistered in his rooms since his illness had taken more of his body. It was one thing to allow her Faith to grace their dinner table. It was a whole other to have the Faith find its place at the Small Council. While his signature still graced the decrees, and his decisions still paramount for he was the King, Viserys had left the dealings of the realm to them. It was for the best - Viserys’ mind was giving way to his illness and the less seen, the better. Alicent didn’t know what she preferred: her husband demeaning her and neglecting her children, or him calling her Aemma when she came to care for him at night.
She grazed her fingers over the polished black marble ball in front of her as Maester Mellos began rattling off the never ending fighting between the Brackens and Blackwoods that not even the Father bearing down from the heavens himself could stop. They continued to tear themselves apart as if they would win all the gold in Casterly Rock for the longest, most ridiculous spat that the Tullys were no longer capable of handling. Sometimes she wished she could just drag charcoal lines along the map, piece off the floodplains to the north and the west and the mountains, let the other kingdoms take their pieces.
“Begs the question if perhaps it isn’t time to elect a new Lord Paramount to bring them to heel,” Lord Wylde harrumphed in his self-important way. The man was well and agreeable enough, Alicent thought, but every time he spoke, she missed Lyonel Strong. None of his proposals contained this ‘begging the question’ sort of nonsense, and none of Wylde’s attempts had any of the late Lord Strong’s well thought out solutions and easy friendliness.
“Unless grievous injustice is done, we cannot normally strip the title of Lord Paramount, but their inability to bring either house to heel since given the title is threatening the stability of the realm. Blackwoods own more land than the Tullys, and now we have reports they’ve gone undermining one another’s orchards, and putting others at risk.” Jasper turned his gaze to Larys, who had not spoken since the prayer. “Strong, your holding is Harrenhal. What do you have to say about this matter?”
Larys’ manner did not fool Alicent, but it worked wonders, as always, on Jasper. “This quarrel of theirs has lasted as long as the dynasty and longer still. King Jaehaerys brokered peace, and we cannot ascertain what sparked it again.” From the nervous licking of his lips to the fidgeting of his hands, he was a master at seeming far less dangerous than he truly was. “You might seek instead the opinion of my dearest uncle Simon. He is the castellan and knows both it and the Riverlands far better than I do, as I’ve been here during most of this recent infighting. ”
Wylde humphed, twitching his nose in such a way that his bushy mustache reminded Alicent of a walrus she’d seen at Driftmark. She dug her nails into her palm to hold back her laugh. “Should we offer the Tullys more incentive?” Wylde blustered, reaching for a solution that he could take credit for.
“Incentive for not letting their bannerman destroy harvests?” Tyland Lannister snorted, reclined in his chair as if he were the one running the meeting. “That’s their duty. If they can’t do it, then there’s a bigger issue to deal with.”
“Perhaps a betrothal,” Lord Beesbury spoke up, his eyes darting from Larys’ to hers. Alicent straightened, watching the man try to figure out how to present his own suggestion. “The Tullys are proud, and the Riverlands command a great host when they come together. Lord Tully’s great-grandson is around Princess Helaena’s age. It would be a show of friendship and goodwill.”
“A show of a dragon is what you mean, isn’t it?” Her father’s voice cut in smoothly, but she could see the annoyance in his eyes at the prospect of Helaena being sent to the Riverlands. She did not want her sweet girl sent so far away either, but his words hurt in their easy protectiveness of her daughter, when they had never done for herself.
“Dragons are a statement, my Lord Hand. If not the princess, perhaps… Lord Strong, your youngest sister is not yet married,” Beesbury continued, flush with ideas. Was Rhaenyra feeding them to him?
“If Grover Tully, or whomever is handling their seat, cannot bring them to heel, we should have the Lords Bracken and Blackwood come and explain themselves to the crown,” she cut in before Beesbury could really get his momentum going. Heads turned to look at her, and Alicent looked to the Grand Maester. “Send ravens today. By the moon’s turn, I want them before the Iron Throne explaining themselves.” There was a curl of satisfaction on her lips as the aging Mellos gestured to his assistant. “We should also have Lord Tully, or his son, also come to answer. I know Lord Grover has been recently ill,” she continued. Authority and compassion were the balance she must always strike, so that her decisions could not be questioned, her judgment nothing but sound. She was the Mother of the Realm after all.
“Well said, your Grace,” Larys said softly, that shadow blink of a smile on his face. Lord Beesbury’s suggestions were easily dismissed.
Tension knotted between her shoulder blades, and she shifted in her chair to relieve the pain. She drummed her fingers on the armrest of the chair as her father’s warning spun dizzily through her thoughts.
Either you prepare Aegon to rule, or you cleave to Rhaenyra and pray for her mercy.
That morning, Ser Criston found the boy who might be king passed out in the stables with his cock in hand; at least her father hadn’t found out. Alicent felt nauseated at the idea of sacrificing a girl barely younger than she’d been in an attempt to corral her son into leadership.
The doors of the chamber opened. Ser Harrold Westerling entered the room with the head dragonkeeper, Arryx, following behind. Her father rose not in a show of respect for the Kingsguard Commander, but some show of power - the unyielding stone and height of the tower that would not bow to neither wind nor storm.
“Forgive my tardiness, your Grace, my lords.”
Her father waved a hand and sat back down. “We were told that you were attending to an urgent matter, Lord Commander.”
Ser Harrold clasped his arm across his chest and bowed to her. “This morning, I was alerted to events that transpired last night inside of the dragonpit. Keeper Arryx wanted to speak of the matter to you personally.” Ser Harrold stepped back to allow the aging keeper to take the floor. Alicent gave her own nod to the man as he rose from his prostration.
“Dreamfyre has laid another clutch of eggs. Only three, your Grace, and she will let no one near them. Vhagar has been circling,” Arryx said.
Alicent frowned. Dreamfyre had not laid a clutch in several years now, and Vhagar rarely came to the pit. She was too old, too large, with little desire to be kept with her smaller brethren. The horrific beast preferred a rocky outcropping far out into the bay.
Aemond had given her a quizzical look when she’d brought it up once, when he was still bedridden and recovering from his mutilation. Her sweet boy was now strung through with a confidence that she’d never seen ignite within him when he had both eyes. The dangerous glint that confidence took as he’d grown older was also new.
She’s protecting what is hers, mother. We both are, he’d said.
“I have spoken with the Commander of the City Watch, your Grace, to ensure that those in the areas closest to the pit keep their distance unless absolutely necessary. It has allowed us to take stock of the current state of those neighborhoods.” Ser Harrold turned to look at Ser Otto. “A full report will be on your desk.”
Her father nodded, and Ser Harrold looked once more to the keeper.
Arryx shifted on his feet, and Alicent watched his eyes flick to the Grand Maester with an expression that she could not discern. The Citadel and the Hightowers have always stood side by side for the betterment of the realm, Alicent, and you’ll continue to foster that friendship, won’t you?
“Five of the kitlings have also died, your Grace. They were unbonded, brought from Dragonstone before…”
Before Daemon had come back.
“How many dragons does this put us at?” Her father’s deceptively mild tone was the opposite of his glee when Aemond had claimed Vhagar. The numbers requested were ones he’d calculated in his head, monthly, since he’d come back.
“Claimed, my lord?” Arryx asked, pausing momentarily. “Eleven, throughout the family. Lady Rhaena’s dragon hatched, but it was born twisted and sickly and did not last. I have not received word otherwise of any intention for Lady Rhaena to come and try to claim another dragon.”
Half of the dragons were claimed. Alicent watched her father drum his fingers along the table. Identifying the pattern took only a moment. He was counting.
Specifically, the dragons that were on their side.
“I want reports of the necropsies upon their completion,” her father said with a narrowed and assessing look, disturbed by the news. “The last thing we need is some strange illness to rip through all of them.”
Alicent chewed on the inside of her lip and watched the shining outline of the seven-pointed star beaming down on the table.
“Syrax is almost big enough for two riders now. Will you come touch the clouds with me, Alicent? Please?” Rhaenyra had always begged, mouth close to her ear, hands stroking her arms, her wounded and bloody fingers.
The joyful look that Aegon once gave her now reserved for a beast: “I’ve never known love until Sunfyre, mother. It’s like the world has color now that we’re together.”
“Dreamfyre keeps me tethered to the ground even as I fly in my dreams. She’s the only anchor I have,” said Helaena, who would withdraw from her touch as if it were a sting from a bee.
Little Daeron and his dragon clutched in his arms: “I can’t leave Tessarion behind, mother! I won’t know how to be happy without her!”
Dragons had robbed Alicent of everything.
“Thank you, Arryx. I will speak to the children and see what Prince Aemond might do about Vhagar.” The idea of her sweet, once immaculate and tender-hearted child being near that twisted, hoary thing still terrified her, no matter how gently reassuring Aemond could be.
Arryx did not move to leave just yet. “Forgive me, your Grace, but Vhagar is no Vermithor or Sunfyre: she is old and willful, and although she is bonded with our prince, I would suggest caution. He is… young, and Vhagar was forged in the fires of battle.”
He bowed once more before taking his leave.
Even in indescribable pain, in the face of his own father’s disregard and disdain, Aemond sought to soothe her. “Do not mourn me, mother. It was a fair exchange. I may have lost an eye, but I gained a dragon.”
What else would her father do to get more dragons on their side?
Nervous tension pulsed in the silence left when the doors closed behind the dragonkeeper, filled only by the soft creak of the Kingsguard’s mail and the gentle clink of the chain around Grand Maester Mellos’ neck as he shifted in his chair, barely audible. The enduring mystery and curiosity of dragons was a specter of The Stranger above them all. Alicent had heard her kingly husband remind Rhaenyra repeatedly: Dragons were not pets. The bond with them should not blind their riders to the power that thrummed ancient and thick in their veins.
She breathed slowly, letting the quiet ease, refusing to meet anyone else’s eyes as the tumult of feelings inside of her crashed upon the jagged edges of her broken ribs. This was the right choice. Her babies were only half-Targaryen, and Rhaenyra’s bastards were the same, whether she’d ever admit to it or not.
Everyone in the room had grown up with the stories that the Conquerors spread when they forged the throne: The Valyrian blood magic that had made them dragonriders was only to be found in their Targaryen blood. That bloodline needed to remain pure. Yet, Rhaena’s pure Valyrian blood did not save her first dragon from being born sickly and dying quickly, while Aemond - Targaryen only by half - bonded with Vhagar, the most powerful beast in the world.
There were no further reasons to believe the Targaryens were gods after all, and above the realm they had conquered.
The great chair of the King creaked as she slowly rose, taking in the council before her. There were no Targaryens in this room, even if she had birthed her own clutch of half-dragons. Alicent bore this task without joy or fanfare. It was a duty to be endured for the good of her family, for the good of her realm.
She stood with her hands folded in front of her, the image of the Mother of the Realm. Alicent had done this once before, when she had declared that she was standing in an official capacity for her husband.
“My lords of the council,” She hedged a glance at her father before moving her gaze to each man at the table. Ladies of the realm should be on the council. “It is with great joy and love that the King and myself, with Lord Larys Strong, announce to the small council that we have arranged the betrothal of our son, Prince Aegon Targaryen, and Lady Abrogail Strong.”
Each of the lords straightened in their chairs. Lord Beesbury frowned and glanced away from her. The uncertain and uncomfortable shifting in his chair belied the embarrassment he was attempting to hide. Alicent felt no need to point it out. It was a fine idea that he’d presented and not his fault he did not know what had already been decided. Even if he was Rhaenyra’s lapdog, Alicent would be the better person, and not rub his face in it.
The congratulations buzzed in her ears as she sat back down in her chair, and beneath the table, she tore at the skin along her left thumbnail. The pain was as dull as the congratulations in her ears. Her father’s voice was distant, jovial even.
They hadn’t even told Aegon and Abrogail yet. She remembered standing in the same position, knowing what was coming, knowing what it would destroy and desperately hoping that it might not.
I have decided to take a new wife. I intend to marry Lady Alicent Hightower before Spring’s end.
I’m sorry, I’m so sorry Rhaenyra forgive me forgivemeforgiveme.
“A feast is in order to announce Prince Aegon and Lady Abrogail’s betrothal,” Tyland’s jovial tone broke the silence. His suggestion—or statement, depending on how Alicent took it—was not one that she’d expected when she sat down in Viserys’ chair, but welcomed the confirmation of his support.
Meanwhile, Larys’s expression gave nothing away. He simply inclined his head in agreement.
Her son — her trueborn son — for all his faults, deserved to be celebrated. She was happy she didn’t have to fight for this. It was Mellos who spoke next: “Given the last wedding that was celebrated within these halls, it would be a reassuring gesture to the Lords of the Realm if they were given the opportunity, and for us to show unity within House Targaryen. With the Prince’s nameday in a few moons, perhaps we can celebrate with a tournament.”
Alicent’s eyes cut to her father, who smiled lightly, nodding in agreement but careful not to say a word, allowing the Maester to be responsible for the idea.
“Even better,” Tyland raised his goblet in agreement. “We haven’t had a proper celebration in years. What better occasion? Lord Rickard Reyne will be overjoyed to hear the honor bestowed on his granddaughter.” He looked over at her father. “I take it you’ll be writing to him, Lord Hand?”
The last time Alicent had seen her uncle Lord Rickard had been at her mother’s funeral: now no longer the worst day of her life, but the memory that was still seared into her mind. She recalled Lord Reyne as a stoic man, but he’d been kind to her in her grief. Alicent hoped the years had not taken that away from him, but they likely had.
Time always stole away kindness.
Lord Beesbury looked pensive. Alicent could practically hear the man pushing house markers along the map in his head as the conversation continued. “Was Princess Rhaenyra involved in such a discussion?”
“The Princess Rhaenyra has continued to seclude herself and,” he paused, his gaze heavy and considering as he took in those around the table. “Her second husband, Daemon Targaryen, at Dragonstone. Neither has she come to the small council as her status allows, nor has she engaged with matters of the realm that her being heir gives her right to,” her father said smoothly, and he was right. “The king still grieves his daughter’s choices, and she has yet to amend with him. I agree with Lord Lannister and our Grand Maester. This would show the strength and unity and willingness of House Targaryen to bond and celebrate with the realm.”
Beesbury gave a humorless chuckle. “And nothing to do with presenting Prince Aegon formally.” As a contender. As a choice - that was left unsaid.
Alicent felt a surge of anger inside of her, instinct compelling her to protect her children and pull the wool Viserys and Rhaenyra spun from Beesbury’s eyes so he could see the truths they refused to acknowledge.
Not long after Aemond had been born, Lord Lyonel had enlisted her in trying to get Viserys to hold another declaration to follow Rhaenyra, if she was truly his desired heir even with two healthy boys of his blood. The King had originally chosen Rhaenyra because of the loss of Baelon and Aemma. Everyone wanted to keep Daemon off the throne, lest he became another Maegor the Cruel… and now, he was to be Rhaenyra’s consort, and Viserys still would do nothing. Alicent refused to believe that Rhaenyra would kill her half-siblings, that she would kill Alicent’s children for whatever love had been there. Every dark, curly haired little boy caused her to fear not what Rhaenyra would decide, but what others would encourage her to do. Her father had not been wrong - her sons would be beacons of rebellion, damned by the man who had so desperately craved a son, yet now ignored. How bitter a pill.
Daemon terrified her. They should all be terrified of him. Daemon now had Rhaenyra’s ear and her heart and her body. Daemon was not one to hesitate if something stood in his way.
Did you fuck Daemon Targaryen in a pleasure house? Targaryens have such queer customs.
“Prince Aegon is eight and ten, an accomplished dragonrider, ah…” Mellos trailed off, and the uncertainty on his face clawed at Alicent’s insides. Failure was acid in her throat.
Either you prepare Aegon…
That boy who would be king had groped six serving girls at the last feast before drinking and whoring his way through the Street of Silk.
“My sister and heir is of unimpeachable character,” Larys’ quiet voice carried within the room. “As a child, Abrogail was a playmate of Prince Aegon and his siblings, and she has become a beloved ward of Queen Alicent, who has done a remarkable job of raising her after the deaths of our parents. I would consider her to be a prime example of all our realm offers to a family that has, if I may be candid, gone to great lengths to keep to their own since the conquest. Wouldn’t you agree, Grand Maester?”
That poor girl she’d now chained to him was a picture of the Maiden. It had taken everything to ensure that her father waited for it. She would not have another bride offered to the throne before she was of age, while her father wanted nothing more than for Aegon to grow up.
Tension crept back into the room at Larys’ words. Nobody would think to utter these thoughts had Viserys been sitting there. Mellos cleared his throat and avoided her father’s gaze to adjust the heavy chain around his neck. The title of Grand Maester had been his even before Viserys’ reign, and he was possibly the closest representative that was not her to speak to Viserys’ mind.
“I would agree, Lord Strong. Perhaps even exploring the eventuality of wedding Prince Aegon’s children to Prince Jacaerys’ would… reassure Princess Rhaenyra. She once suggested a betrothal between Princess Helaena and-”
“We already have other candidates in mind for my daughter,” Alicent cut in immediately. She wouldn’t say anything about Jace’s children and future grandchildren. She refused to entertain the idea that Helaena would marry Rhaneyra’s son to cover her indignity and insult to everything that she had been given and born into. “We have time before the wedding,” she said with a gentler tone. “A year should be more than enough to introduce them to the realm and start introducing Prince Aegon to newer responsibilities befitting his station.”
That was time enough to beat her son into someone who could be King.
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Morning light streamed through the gauzy, sage curtains of the princess’ room. Abrogail licked the honey clinging to her fingers as she moved towards the washbasin, abandoning half-eaten bread and cold cuts of meat at the table. Helaena also ignored their meal as she lingered at the only window that could give her a good view of the Dragonpit. Vhagar had been on the prowl that morning, unusually territorial, and the change in the dragon’s temperament had entranced the friend whom she called sister. She jumped when Abby ventured near her, eyes wide and body tense as a startled cat, so the redhead pivoted in the opposite direction in order to retrieve Helaena’s bodice. Normally, she did not wear one unless the Queen noticed, but on days when her mind drifted, the structure of the garment seemed to keep Helaena focused on the moment instead of her dreams. The princess was somewhere else in her thoughts, mechanically holding up her arms to have the bodice slipped over her shift.
“I’m going to tighten the laces now, alright, Helaena?” Abrogail told the princess as she always did, walking through the process so she wasn’t surprised by anything.
Helaena gave no verbal indication that she was listening, but Abby noticed her pale blonde head bob in acceptance. Slowly, she began straightening the garment, mindful of keeping her touch on the lacing and the chemise from pulling and pinching uncomfortably and defeating the purpose.
“Pink and red, he might be dead. Blue and black, no coming back,” Helaena murmured. Her gaze drifted to Myrella Penrose, who approached with a yellow, diamond patterned dress for inspection. “I don’t want my scales to be so bright.” Helaena’s voice did not rise from her quiet tone, and her gaze flitted away.
“How about the new one from Sevenmas?” Abby offered brightly before Myrella’s face could twist into the uncertain and disturbed look it took whenever Helaena drifted. “The ocean blue one with the beading. That’ll be nice to feel, right, Helaena?”
The princess tilted her head about, humming. “Yes, that would be.” She threaded her fingers together, pressing in so the knuckles would crack. Myrella visibly winced at the sound, but Abby just shook her head and carefully tucked the laces into the bodice. “The perfect hug,” came the breathless statement, before Helaena’s bright lavender eyes finally focused away from whatever she was tracking to turn around and look towards her. Abby took the dress from Myrella and offered her cousin a smile as she held it up. She was used to Helaena’s inquisitive gazes, as if she was a bug under the pretty Maester’s glass Aemond had gifted his sister. “Do you need them, too?”
“A hug?” Abby frowned.
“Scales - armor to protect you,” she clarified. Helaena held her arms up to slide the dress over her head, and Abby left her to do the little buttons down the front herself. “Or would you prefer a pretty carapace? Silver and reds, greens and blue. Pinks and black and gold.”
Abby laughed at the idea of being covered in so many colors, and Helaena even returned the smile as she finished her buttons. It was a good sign, and the tingle of worry that had been crawling up and down along her spine immediately eased. “To be decorated in so many colors? That would make for lovely armor.”
Helaena’s mood was improving, which meant that when the Queen finally came in, she wouldn’t immediately launch into fretting and worrying about the princess being in ‘one of her episodes.’ Abby knew the Queen did not mean it badly, but it still made her uncomfortable. Were her mother still there, she would say something if Abby expressed her concern. She was alone here now, and things were as different as the day and night.
The door creaked open, but it wasn’t Alicent who entered. Helaena’s little smile turned bright and beaming: “Aemond!”
At four and ten, the boy was steadily growing with each passing turn of the moon. While bypassing Abrogail in height was no difficult feat, he now stood as tall as his sister and mother. Prince Aegon was the next family member he was bound to outgrow, and the Queen had already tasked her with ordering clothes to be made ready for when Aemond shot up again. Lord Otto towered over most, and he japed that Aemond might make it where Aegon had failed to surpass him.
Hearing Helaena’s joyous declaration, Abby caught a spray of pink blooming on his pale cheeks, and Aemond reached up to adjust the soft leather strap of his eyepatch. The scar no longer looked angry, but it was prominent; a ridge of thick skin that was only just smoothing out with time. The prince held a jar carefully in his hands. He took several steps before Abby clucked her tongue at him the way she would at her own cat, though Theraxis had not joined her that morning in Helaena’s room. Earlier, a maid brought along with their meals news that the cat was gallivanting in the discarded feathers while the scullery maids plucked chickens.
“Your mother will be up any minute. She said she doesn’t want to catch you in here anymore,” Abby warned with an arched brow. There was no censure in her teasing tone. Aemond was nearly her own little brother, although much was changing as they left their childhoods behind.
“She won’t be here for him,” Helaena said in a voice far more present than it had been before, Aemond’s very presence pulling her back down to earth and away from the clouds. “What did you bring me?” Even though her buttons were only half-done, Helaena rushed across the room to Aemond with her arms outstretched and fingers wiggling. “Oh! It’s beautiful! Abby! Look!” She held up the jar filled with little sticks and leaves – a fat blue and yellow cocoon precariously hanging from one forked stick inside. “I wonder if it belongs to the ones I released last year.”
“You’ll be the mother of all the moths and butterflies in the Red Keep,” Aemond said softly, so softly that Abby could hardly hear him despite standing close by.
Abrogail moved away from the siblings, smiling at Myrella and leading the woman to the opened door. “Thank you for your help this morning. I believe the Queen will need you more today. Let her know we’ll be going to the gardens later, if you please.” Lately, the Queen had been sending the Penrose woman to help Abby tend to the princess’ needs. It had made her nervous. When she asked the Queen if she was being replaced, the words stuck to her throat. Her Grace had been adamant that it was not the case at all, that it was only so Abrogail could learn from her in preparation for her own running of a household, and give Helaena time to get used to someone else helping her.
Another part of Abby wondered if the Queen knew Aemond was still coming to visit in the morning. Or worse, that Uncle Otto was spying. Abby was protective of her friends, her kin. They were siblings bonded through the years of fights in the mud and pranks and stories in the nursery. Bonds such as theirs were not so easily broken; they only changed as time passed, as things happened, like Aemond losing an eye.
Myrella Penrose gave her a tight smile and left down the hall. Abby watched her go, lingering in the door as Aemond and Helaena whispered in the room. Her friend’s quiet giggles were a rare sound, and Abby would do anything to protect those moments for her, for them both. She tugged at the embroidered cuffs of her dark blue-gray dress, thumbs brushing the little weirwood leaves sewn in delicate scarlet thread. Little golden dragons danced through them as a symbol of her ties with the family. Aegon had picked the golden thread, predictable as ever, when she’d asked his opinion.
She thought of the embroidered knot Helaena had been making – silver and green, tangling with red and black and gold. There were so many twists, but Helaena assured her that there was a rhyme to it, a dance with complicated steps. Aemond’s soft laugh cracked a bit, and Abby bit her lower lip to hide her giggle at the sound. She turned her head, and while she couldn’t quite make them out, she could see their shadows along the stone floor. They stood close together, heads bowed over something - maybe the jar, she couldn’t tell.
Heavy and purposeful footsteps echoed down the hall. Abby’s head snapped up from where she stood within the doorway, not immediately visible. She strained to identify the cadence, and her stomach twisted when she did.
“It’s him,” she hissed, glancing wide-eyed over her shoulder. Aemond’s head was close to Helaena’s with her hands resting on his shoulders. At Abby’s raised alarm, her fingers twisted in his dark green doublet and yanked him towards the partition, shoving him behind it. Abby snatched the jar with the precious cocoon inside and tucked it on the bookshelf behind the embroidered manticore Helaena had just finished. Otto Hightower’s footsteps were not alone, although the Hightower guards did not enter the Princess’ room when he swept in. Abby immediately dropped into a curtsy, a murmur of, “Lord Uncle.” Helaena bobbed slightly, twisting back and forth a bit. “Good morning, grandfather,” she said, bounding up to press a kiss on his cheek. If Otto had any weakness, it would be his unparalleled love and favoritism of his granddaughter. It was hard to tell how much Helaena enjoyed her grandfather’s attention and how much was one of her games, but whatever it was, it worked.
“Good morning, sweet girl. You look lovely today.” Otto’s voice was fond, his smile more gentle than he seemed capable of. He was an intimidating man. Abby had received nothing but kindness and vague disinterest, but he still made her nervous. “I hope you don’t mind, but I need to borrow your cousin.” She felt her cheeks color as Otto’s gaze moved to her. Her mouth dried as her nerves returned to where they’d been when standing before the Queen, wondering if she was being replaced. Perhaps Larys was sending her back to Harrenhal or her sister was demanding she go to her in Casterly Rock.
Helaena smiled at her, though, with her hands folded across her stomach. “I’ll help you with your carapace later,” she reassured her. “You won’t be without armor.”
Closing the door behind them, the Hightower guards followed a few paces behind as Abby fell in step with him.
“Is everything alright?” she asked as they went left instead of right, towards the Hand’s tower. It had been years since she’d walked this path that had been as familiar to her as the gardens of the Red Keep. Her eyes glanced for the loose stone at the corner of the step, where she’d stow secret messages in the little hollow behind it. Had she left a note there? Was there perhaps a mystery one waiting for her?
“It is. And I hope you have been well yourself.” Lord Otto looked down at her gently, and she nodded. “The Queen says you pray often in the Sept?”
A prompt. A strange one, but a prompt all the same. She swallowed past her dry mouth and put a smile on her face. “Yes, I enjoy the quiet, and it helps me feel closer to my parents.” And brother, but she was careful not to mention Harwin around anyone but a handful. “It’s especially nice when her Grace joins me. It’s almost like I have my mother back.” No one could replace her mother, but the Queen had been there for as long as she could remember, and sometimes, when she tilted her head a certain way and the light caught in Queen Alicent’s auburn curls, she could pretend her mother was there once more.
“Her Grace speaks highly of you – how good you are with Princess Helaena, well behaved and polite. She said that you and the princess have made things for the poor children of the city. A very kind and admirable pursuit for you both. Your father would be very proud.”
“Thank you.” Abby wasn’t sure what else to say or what he was getting at as they began climbing the winding staircase. The familiarity of it hit her like a scent memory - one sudden and revealing of long-forgotten feelings. “I do my best to follow the Queen’s guidance and reflect well on my position within the family and her example.”
“Good. Very good.” She wasn’t sure if it was something she was supposed to reply to, so she hedged her bets and remained quiet. Her palms were sweating, and she discreetly wiped them on her skirt as she held the fabric. “I’ve noticed that you and Prince Aegon do not spend as much time together as you used to.”
Aegon? Why was she being asked about Aegon? Her stomach twisted, and she felt a prickle of heat along the back of her neck. It was true: they didn’t spend as much time together, but they hadn’t for years now, not since she spent more of her time with Helaena and… Aegon? Well, Aegon had been withdrawing slowly but surely for so long, like fraying threads at the seams. She’d be lying if she claimed to not miss him, because she did. She missed the happier boy he’d been, who did not constantly ply himself with drink and was more mercurial than a wild dragon.
Abrogail would also be lying if she claimed they saw little of one another, or spent no time at all because that was untrue as well. Until the past few moons, she’d gather lunch for the two of them when he finally rose well past noon, and he’d take her flying wherever he and Sunfyre desired to go. It had been something quiet and cherished, simply the three of them away from everything. Until Aegon had gotten in the tavern brawl all that time ago. Until Aegon started avoiding her. Until he barely acknowledged her at meals that he decided to join, even when he sat beside her. There was no way that Otto Hightower would not be aware of that, and she would not hedge around it. It wasn’t like anything untoward was happening.
“Not as much, but that is a natural casualty of leaving behind childhood. He found me earlier this week because it seemed there was a lack of honey cakes in the kitchen and I was the first to be interrogated.” There was a note of amusement in her voice, and Abby smiled in memory of his indignation and how silly he looked when she shoved honey cake into his mouth to stop his ranting. “He occasionally accompanies me in the Sept to pray. It’s incredibly kind of him to do so.”
She mounted a few more steps before realizing that Lord Hightower had paused. She turned to look at him. Morning light streaked through the narrow, delicate paned windows, casting shadow and illuminating dust in the air. He stared up at her, and with a few steps between them, she stood at his height. It was the first time she’d ever met her uncle’s eyes. Unlike her own unreadable brother, Otto’s face was not so impassive. He looked intrigued by her admission. Abby’s hands wound into her skirt so as not to fidget.
“He was not inappropriate, if that is your concern, my lord. Prince Aegon behaved with due respect.” To defend Aegon was second nature to her, and she would do so towards arguably the most powerful man in the realm if it meant to spare Aegon more shame and ire when, for once, he’d done nothing wrong. Which was true. Aegon hadn’t said a single thing. He knelt beside her, lighting candles, and simply stayed with her while she prayed for her family. He hadn’t even put a hand of comfort on her shoulder. She felt that was worth mentioning, given his current proclivities. She would not deny his vices, but she would not break confidence, and she would let no one, especially Lord Otto, think any worse of him if she could help it.
“Very good.” It took everything in her to keep the bewilderment off her face as she tried to understand what exactly he was trying to figure out. Otto resumed their progress, although now he rested a heavy hand between her shoulder blades like a father guiding a child. “So, you have no current complications with him?”
Complications? Did he think she’d lifted her skirts for Aegon? It wasn’t like she’d never thought of kissing him on those lazy afternoons when they’d lay in the grass and stare at the sky somewhere in the Kingswood with Sunfyre sunning himself like a cat. Of course she’d thought about kissing him, especially when he was at his most melancholy, with tears pooling in his eyes, making them pinker than normal. A kiss beyond the games children play, a kiss to comfort an angry prince in the firelight’s glow, his tears coursing down his cheeks with each snip of her embroidery scissors that sent locks of moonlight hair to the ground.
He’d never touched her more than a handhold, and far less than she touched him in her casual affections.
“No. No complications,” she confirmed.
They reached the landing, and Abby ran her hand over the stone dragon curled up in eternal sleep at the top of the stairs. Her fingers scratched along the smooth curve of its head the way she’d done every morning when she visited her father. She felt her uncle’s gaze on her, and she drew her hand away, hurrying to follow him into his office with her cheeks burning beneath her freckles, relieved only just by his vaguely amused expression.
The room was darker than it had been before. Gone were the stacks of books with various slips of paper sticking out haphazardly, or Theraxis lounging lazily along the cool stone floor by the door with his fluffy tail, sending motes of dust into the air. She instinctively clutched her skirt on the right to pull them away, so used to a giant paw the size of her hand grabbing at the fluttering fabric. But Theraxis was not there. The crumbling tome about the Andal invasion was absent from where it once rested on the side table. Instead, Larys stood by the fire with his back to her, as did the Queen, her lovely green dress covering her from neck to wrist with a golden pattern woven in the fabric that caught the firelight. Her face pinched in the way it did when she was uncertain and trying not to pick at her nails.
Abby noticed, of course. It usually meant that someone was about to get yelled at or she would send them away with the other ladies.
The figure in the chair slouched so far down that his silver head nearly vanished behind the back of it. At the clearing of Lord Otto’s throat, Aegon jerked up. His whole body held so much tension that it made Abby’s own hurt just by looking at him. He peered over his shoulder at them with glossy, red-rimmed eyes that give him a strange, ethereal sort of gaze, skin pale enough to prominently display the flushed pink mottling of a strike against his right cheek. He looked stuffy and uncomfortable in his dark green doublet, his fingers absently tugging at the buttons and collar. As his gaze focused, his eyes widened and darted from the uncertainty she knew was on her own face to his grandfather behind her.
The thud as Otto shut the door reverberated through her, and she and Aegon both flinched at the sound. Out of the corner of her eye, Abby could see the Queen flinch as well. Larys, as always, looked unphased. The heavy hand on her back pushed her towards the empty chair closer to the fire, and she had no time to bob a curtsy; courtesies stuck like toffee in her mouth.
The chairs once held the delicately embroidered pillows her mother made. She would curl up with them and read aloud from the books scattered around while her papa worked. He would-
“Queen Alicent and Lord Larys have received several letters expressing interest in you, Abrogail,” Otto said, walking behind his desk. She dug her thumbnail into the pad of her middle finger, and she saw Aegon’s booted foot twitch on the flagstone – a rocking motion from the ball of his foot to his heel before slapping it back down beneath the desk. Wood crackled in the fireplace. “Lord Farman is looking for a wife for his eldest, and Faircastle would be close to your sister.”
He plucked a scroll from the basket as he spoke, and Abby felt her stomach churn with nerves as a red heat clawed along her throat. She did not venture a look at Aegon, save for the foot he kept rocking back, the heel he repeatedly ground into the floor. He’d not gone back to slouching. He could be indolent and rude when he wanted, but not even Aegon dared to in his grandfather’s presence. Abby didn’t understand what this was about, or why Aegon was here.
“Edmund Vance, the heir to House Vance, recently lost his wife. A good man, and part of the Riverlands although a small seat. Or, if you married Jesper Celtigar, the heir of Crackclaw, you’d be able to remain in King’s Landing.”
Otto Hightower produced scroll after scroll and Abrogail felt the flush of embarrassment in her cheeks, confusion keeping her words locked away. How was she supposed to react to all of this? What was he trying to say? Were all these marriage proposals meant to make her feel better about herself? No, that was too odd to contemplate.
Why was Aegon here?
“Lord Grover has also written of his interest in you for his grandson. A Paramount seat would let you be close to your home at Harrenhal, and he already has an heir. He would take good care of you, and your children would have every opportunity.” Another scroll plucked from the basket. “It would bring Harrenhal into their holdings. Is that not correct, Lord Larys?”
Right. Harrenhal.
A woman’s lot is to only be worth what she could bring to the table.
Her brother was a man of few words, and he inclined his head with a shadow of a smile flickering across his face. Abby looked at the queen to find that her face was pinching harder. In the interim, Queen Alicent stepped away from the fire and moved instead to the desk with the gentle swoosh of her skirts gliding across the stone. She cleared her throat, a smile fighting its way on her face.
“All the offers were wonderful for you, my sweet girl, but none seemed right.” The Queen reached out to tuck a copper curl behind her ear, and Abby could not tell if this was supposed to be comforting to her or if the Queen sought comfort in the action for herself. Her lungs felt constricted, and it finally dawned on her.
Oh.
The sole of Aegon’s boot continued to drag across the stone in both a nervous fidget and to keep himself from slouching down even further into the chair. The only reason she could hear it was because of how focused she’d been on it, but now blood rushed into her head and Abby broke eye contact with her cousin to look down in her lap.
“What does seem right is for you and Aegon to be married, after your nameday. You’ll be eight and ten, and the pair of you will go to live at Harrenhal, and make your home there.”
Oh.
“Are you fucking serious?” Aegon’s voice was a hoarse, disused rasp from a night with endless drink. When she looked at him again, she noticed that his hair was still damp, and that beads of water from the wet ends had soaked little spots into the collar of his shirt. He wasn’t looking at her, but up at his mother, and then, incredulously, across the desk at his grandfather.
Otto’s face remained impassive following his grandson’s outburst. Abby wanted to grab Aegon and drag him out of the way of whatever was about to come out of the Hand’s mouth, as if the words would physically harm him.
The silence lengthened. Another log popped in the fireplace.
“He speaks.” The amusement in Otto’s voice caused Aegon to draw back further into his chair before he finally turned to look at her. His eyes were so red-rimmed, and his sullen face was so terribly pale that the pink-lilac of his eyes stood out ethereally, inhumanly like the drawing of a fae folk from a book she had as a child - wild and cornered. He’d bitten his pouty, chapped lips bloody.
Aegon searched her face for an answer to a question that she did not know. The only thing Abrogail could do was give him the gentle, reassuring smile she’d given him countless times before. It was what she did in this world: comfort her loved ones in any way possible, even as she needed to bury her own feelings on the matter. Feelings that, in this particular case, she couldn’t even begin untangling in the moment.
“Well, that makes us luckier than most, doesn’t it?” Abby cleared her throat and turned the smile onto the others in the room. She reached up to grasp the Queen’s hand and gave her a reassuring squeeze before she burst into a million pieces. Whether it was her, or the Queen, that might burst, she could not say. “We are fortunate to know one another so well and to be of an age. I thank you Lord Hightower, your Grace.” She looked at Larys, who remained silent in his observations, as always – an owl in a tree, eyes taking in everything. “Thank you, brother, for looking out for me.”
She felt Aegon’s eyes continue to pin on her. She looked back at him.
The wild and anxious expression was still on his face, and instinct compelled her, as it often did, to reach out her hand to take his - but he surprised her by beating her to it. His skin felt like fire engulfing her frigid hand and his fingers tangled with hers with easy familiarity. Before she could register what was happening, Aegon’s chair was already scraping across the floor and he pulled her from her chair with the momentum of jumping from his own. There was no pause in his movement as he dragged her to the door.
“How very fortunate we are.” A laugh bubbled from Aegon’s chest. It was a joyless sound when he laughed in the presence of his mother and grandsire. It was edged with the familiar mania; Aegon laughed when he was afraid, when he was anxious, when he was trying not to scream as his world was coming apart, or the laughter and joy on the back of Sunfyre. He tilted his head to stare up at the ceiling before throwing a look over his shoulder at the three across the room. “How very lucky we are.”
Aegon’s hand was clammy around hers, his grip bordering on painful. He yanked the door open with a protesting whine of the latch. Abby heard the Queen calling after him, but Aegon’s strides were purposeful as they ate up the ground to get away. Only the grip of their hands kept her from being left behind in the claustrophobic room where their future was being decided for them.
It might have been the second bravest thing she’d ever witnessed from him.
[Chapter Two]
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