#we‘ll never be royals

[alma-artts]

guys. royals by lorde and jenny humphrey.

[deardollyz]

A Murder At The Palace

(A/n: WOAHHHH dolly writes for once!!! Weird to see it! Anyway, this is/was my first and only „long“ story and it lowkey, sucks ass. My bad. This includes my OCS!!! No official characters from media here.)

NOT PROOF READ WE DIE LIKE MEN.

CONTENT INCLUDED: murder you idiot, Reagan being a hopeless romantic, slight romantic implications at the end take the ending as you will i don‘t really gaf.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“She’s just an outcast, a heathen at that. Pain wont matter, its all the same”

“She’s a witch. Burn her at the stake.”

They all talked, chastised. HE Spreads the rumors. It felt like they were closing in, the air got denser and it got harder to breathe in and out.

“ w-

“Reagan wake up, its time to go to the market.” I felt Cassidy shake me awake. It was just a dream…a nightmare at that. I don’t understand- I'm letting them get to my head….

I dragged myself out of bed and stretched a crick out of my neck. 

After struggling to pull on my dress for the market i met Cassidy outside holding a basket. 

“You all set?” She asked, slight sarcasm tainting her voice. I hummed in reply, making sure my black kitten was tucked safely inside. 

And so we set off into the busy streets.

We passed some familiar faces on the way, a wandering entertainer that we knew by the name of Ali. And an outcast like me, Ramona. We waved and hellos were exchanged but nothing more, we needed to get our food before any mishaps could occur. 

“Cassidy look at this, theres a sign saying theres been attempts to kill the queen to be-” i pointed to the sign, slightly tilting my head. “I bet its just a hoax to rile people up.” Cassidy blankly said, checking all the apples to see if they had bruises, I huffed, she never seemed to really care even though we knew the Royal quite personally. Cassidy quickly paid for the food and pulled me along the roads, picking up things as we went. “We need to hurry home, the streets are getting too busy.” Cassidy said. I nodded, checking to see if my cat was ok from the jostling of the basket. My kit mewled at me, assuring she was fine. 

~~~~~~~~

Around 4 o’clock there was a firm knock on the door. “Reagan can you answer that?” Cassidy called from the other room. I hummed in reply, going up to the door and opening it a bit to see who it was. “Oh hello there Lady Amari, what brings you here?” I said, greeting the knight. “Ive come to bring an invitation this time, not just to laze off I'm afraid.” She laughed before handing me a piece of paper. “You are invited to the royal ball of Princess Tamara to celebrate her eighteenth birthday..” I read to myself. “Oh how wonderful!~” I exclaimed, hugging the paper close to my chest. “We‘ll be there for sure!” I said, as the knight bid me goodbye. I ran into the room Cassidy was in, quickly rushing to tell her the news. She simply waved me off saying i should go ahead and get ready. I ran up to my room and pulled out a trunk from under my bed .

There should be a few dresses my mother gave me in here… i thought to myself, searching throughly. I soon found found a nice light blue dress with deep pink lace. I started to inspect it for spots before holding it up to myself in the mirror. It was perfect…

Just as I was tightening the corset i heard my kit yawn, sitting on my vanity chair. I smiled at her, She was such a nice cat. I walked around my room a bit, to see if the dress fit enough. 

I twirled a few times before sitting down on the other plush stool next to my vanity. I took my hair out the two plaits i usually have and took some golden pins I inherited from my grandmother. I tried to fix my hair into a bun but strands kept sticking out in all sorts of directions. I huffed in frustration and braided it into a single braid before coiling it and sticking a pin in. “It will do.” I said, shrugging. My kitten messed with a necklace, catching it on her ears. I laughed at her amusement while putting on my own jewelry. The kit batted at my earrings causing me to bring her into my lap, stroking her head. She seemed content with the action. 

I placed a silver floral headpiece atop my hair, lacing my bangs nicely. I heard a soft knock on my door. “Come in!” I called out, seeing Cassidy in the doorway. “Reagan it’s nearly time to go aren’t you ready.” She said. I noticed her dress was even prettier than her usual one. It was a dark navy blue like the midnight sky and had lace lining the ends with a tulle veil near the waist. 

“Yes I'm ready.” I said cheerfully, standing from my seat. I slipped on my gloves before checking to see if kit was asleep. I saw her peaceful form sleeping comfortably, so I set off with Cassidy.

The carriage ride was a bit bumpy due to the road not being used much. But it was fine compared to other roads we’ve taken before on foot. 

We arrived at the palace at around what I could think was 8 o’clock judging by the look of the sky. Cassidy and I were then ushered inside where I finally got a view of the inside of the palace. “It’s…beautiful….” I gaped, seeing all the decorations and crown molding on the walls. We walked into the main room where the party was taking place. Princess Tamara was chatting with Lady Demetria while Lady Amari was stuffing her face per usual. I scanned the room for my two sisters, Roxy and Reese, and eventually spotted them looking at a few paintings near the exit. I ran up to them and hugged Roxy tight, I hadn’t seen her or Reese since we moved. We had separate houses but couldn’t see eachother a lot. I hugged Reese too, careful not to ruin her buns. After some catching up I started to hear music. Ballroom music. I saw couples joining together to dance, a few caught my eye as familiar faces. The bakers daughter and apprentice, the teacher from another kingdom and a familiar long black haired bard. And the tavern owner and some lady with long pink hair. 

Lady Demetria stood up and clasped her hands together to get our attention. “Attention everyone! Today we celebrate the day of our princess’s birth, a day of joy and luck throughout the whole kingdom! And to welcome her as the new Queen!” She said, raising a glass. everyone else did the same. we all made a toast and I heard from the far back someone choking on their cider. I stifled a laugh, taking a sip of my own cider. I went back over to Cassidy, seeing her clearly bored. “Oh Cassidy wouldn’t it be nice to have someone that loved you, let alone to dance with…” I put a hand on my cheek, staring into space. She shook her head as if letting me know she thought i was insane. “Rea, you must stop thinking like that or you’ll get nowhere.” She laughed, putting a hand on my shoulder. I gave her a side eye, continuing my monologue. “-someone that adores you and won’t ever leave you for anything else. It would just be nice you know!” I finished, slightly irritated by her last comment. 

“Whatever you say ninny.” She shrugged. Ninny was a weird nickname she gives me when shes done with my rambling, so I knew it was best not to “bother” her anymore. 

After wandering around a bit I found a partner to dance with for a while before finally sitting down on one of the plush stools set around the room. I swear my legs were aching like fire.

Tick…tock…tick…tock…10:45 PM

People were gracefully dancing across the room until…….the lights went out.

The chandeliers lights suddenly cut, causing everyone to gasp in horror, I instinctively clung to the person closest to me, god i hated the dark….

Soon enough, a loud bang ran out throughout the room, followed by a scream and thud. And then the lights came back on. Everyone stood in horror, Queen Tamara had been murdered. I noticed Sage out of the corner of my eye, she turned to look at me, since she definitely knew who did it. But before anything could happen, another gunshot rang out, causing the chandelier to crash down. I grabbed a sword from one of the statues and prepared myself to fight as some rushed to get away. This was no accident. There was someone out to kill everyone here. The lights were dim, no one was visible but a few faces, but someone was approaching me with a weapon. I braced myself and blocked the attack, as the music grew louder and louder by the second. Out of the corner of my eye i noticed a statue move. “This is the work of some very dark magic…the statues are sentient.” i thought to myself, now fighting with what i assumed was once of the statues. Cassidy was nowhere to be seen, so i knew it couldn’t be her, I trusted her getting as many people out as possible. I landed a slash of my sword against my opponents arm, which only caused them to get even more aggravated as it got harder and harder to dodge moves. I looked up for a moment and noticed Sage gracefully dancing across the balcony railing with one of the statues, a very nice distraction indeed..

My hair was out of the style and disheveled at this point, and I was bleeding from my cheek, but eventually managed to land a large enough slash on my opponent to cause them to fall to the floor.

I felt a blunt object collide with my head, making me feel lightheaded, but I had to keep fighting if i wanted to keep my head. The music was pounding in my ears at this point, the sound of gunshots mixing in with the music. As i was distracted for a second, the statue struck me against the head. “I feel….dead…” I thought, and only felt myself colliding with the marble floor. 

“Reagan”

“…..Reagan…wake up…” I faintly heard, My head was pounding, and my vision felt blurry, blood was on my hands…it was mine. I looked around the best of my ability, and noticed I was laying in the courtyard, next to a bed of flowers. I saw Scarlett faintly, and she helped me sit up. “Tamara….the ball…WAIT.” I thought before speaking. 

“Is-” I got cut off by Scarlett. “She’s dead. Amanda’s taking her place as Queen. The murderer is still unknown, it seems they used some sort of dark arts to make the statues sentient and kill her with some external force.” She said, and I felt a pit in my stomach, we were friends…

“What about the others…?” I hesitated asking. A small smile crossed Scarletts face, as she gave me a pat on the shoulder. “Everyone else is fine, just shaken, and lightly injured. They’re trying to get everything under control and all.” She said, I felt relieved by that.

 “By the way, theres a gentleman that was worried about you, and wanted to see you, follow me.” Scarlett grasped my hand and pulled me towards the gate, where i noticed a young man. His eyes pierced into mine, it made me feel…odd…in a nice way…. 

He pulled me close to him in a tight embrace, and i felt myself feeling…warm. Despite how chilly it was outside. He smiled softly before whispering in my ear.

“There you are darling, I was getting worried about you, you know? I missed you.”

…

Who…?…

[fullsunalicia]

can you write a royal au with any of the dreamies?? thank you and your writing is really good!

a true love‘s kiss — NJM

as the youngest of four daughters, you are the least of all expected to ascend the throne. sure, you can marry, but with your father‘s reputation and the land he possesses, no one‘s going to fight for the daughter that is going to inherit nothing. that is, until one particular beautiful prince sets eyes on you and never wants to look anywhere else ever again.

prince!na jaemin x princess!reader

thank you so much for the request, and your kind words! 🤍 honestly i thought of jaemin right away and the idea made me really giddy. i hope you enjoy!

Na Jaemin is famous for his beauty and his power. It‘s no wonder that someday, he comes knocking at your father‘s doors, asking for his daughter‘s hand in marriage.

Everyone hopes to marry Soyeon. She‘s the eldest, and most beautiful one of you. Because there are no brothers in this family, she is going to take the throne someday and be called Queen, while you and your elder sisters will remain princesses. Maybe after her coronation, someone will have pity on you and make you their queen.

But as long as Soyeon is unwed, no one‘s eyes will ever sway to you.

You have come to like living in her shadow. The attention is never on you, and you essentially get to be the troublemaker without being punished too much. Soyeon may be the eldest, but you‘re the favorite, the baby of the family. You are spoiled rotten, and everybody knows. Despite that, you still treat everyone with respect, thank the servants for even the littlest things and like to spend time with the people in the castle, no matter what social standing they are of.

So when a servant of yours informs you that Prince Jaemin is to come visit, you shrug and turn your attention back to the flowers again.

Most times, the servants forbid you from helping them. Most times, you just ignore them and do it anyways. That‘s why you’re sitting next to Haseul (your gardner) right now, knees deep in the mud, even though your dress was more expensive than imaginable.

„Are you not excited to meet him, princess?“ Haseul hands you a particularly beautiful tulip, and you set it aside. Later, you‘d put it into a vase in your chamber. „I heard he‘s very charming. He‘s got it from his father, no doubt - he‘s a good king, but it took the man some time to settle down.“

„How do you know?“ You‘ve heard much about the rumoured Na king, and you even remember an encounter when you were really young. He had gifted you a very nice necklace, still well-kept of in one of your drawers. He‘s nice, but you don‘t know what kind of king that makes him. Politics is not your forte.

Being a troublemaker is.

„Servant‘s gossip.“ Haseul tears open a bag of planting seeds, and she holds it open for you so you can scoop out a a handful. Where you‘re kneeling right now would soon be a field of roses, in just a few weeks. „Information spreads fast, especially when it‘s being spread by the people working in the castle. I‘ve heard their servants are being treated exceptionally well. Maybe as nice as ours, but they don‘t have a princess like we do.“

That makes you smile.

There‘s one amazing key factor to being the youngest. The rules don‘t apply to you as much. You are not expected to be the picture-perfect daughter who has to satisfy the entire world, and you are not expected to mingle with the right crowd. No one is fazed when you hug the maiden who helped you put on your corsage. Nobody minds it when you pop into the kitchen and thank all the cooks for the nice food.

Heavy is the head that wears the crown. Thankfully, you‘ll never have to.

Haseul helps you up and sighs at the many stains the flower bed has left on your dress, but she only shoos you away and tells you to get changed before your mother sees.

The castle is enormous. If you hadn‘t been raised here, you‘d gest lost often. The hallways are like a maze, leading god knows where and sometimes, most parts of the castle are inhabited. Countless times have people lost their way in here, and every time they are lead back by an awkward grinning servant or the princesses who come looking for them. Your chamber isn‘t the biggest one, but in your opinion the prettiest - through the windows, you have a perfect view of the garden, watching the sun set and rise on your favorite flowers.

„We must get you ready quickly, princess,“ the girl who‘s helping you step out of the dress says. She‘s new, you notice it immediately. Even if it seems impossible, you try and remember every face of everyone who works here, even if you catch a glimpse of your sisters‘ servants only once a year. This maiden is new, maybe even younger than you are. „Prince Jaemin is already on his way.“

„Are you new here? What‘s your name?“

She smiles. „I‘ve heard of your kindness towards the people who work for you,“ the unknown lady mumbles, and you watch as she turns you around to tie your corsage. Her fingers are nimble, rough at the tips. „Thank you. But we mustn‘t be late, so we‘ll have to wait for afterwards with the introductions.“

„Will you tell me your name then?“

Someone opens the door to your room, carrying in a monstrosity of a dress. Of course it‘s breathtakingly beautiful, but it‘s practically a star. Jewels blink at every fold of the garment, thin, barely there, but still shining bightly. A little bit like you.

Your new friend giggles as she waves the person who carried the gown in closer so they can help. „Sure,“ the respond comes several seconds later. „If you promise me to shine just as bright as your sisters tonight. Don‘t let them steal the spotlight all the time - there‘s a reason you‘re the favorite.“

❀ ❀ ❀

Na Jaemin is so beautiful, you almost want to cry.

Well, not like you‘d waste your tears on men. For a silly reason, atleast. But you‘d make an exception for this prince, who seems more angel than human, because his smile makes everyone in the room breathless and he doesn‘t seem to notice. Or maybe he does, and he enjoys it.

For the first time in long, you‘re sad that suitors only look for Soyeon.

Of course you wish the best for your sister. She‘s strict towards you, but she still loves you. She was the first person to see you walk, because she taught you how. Soyeon taught you how to tie your own corsage, because any proper woman should be able to. Every now and then, she forces you to sit down and study, even though it‘s not expected of princesses to be highly educated. But Soyeon expects it. She knows every corner of your razor-sharp intellect and she wants you to use it.

You want her to marry someone who treasures her. But you also want someone to look at you like everyone seems to look at her.

The promise you had given to the new girl rings in your head, but you can‘t seem to bring yourself to do it. Na Jaemin hasn‘t looked at you once. So you lower your head, and wait for it to be over.

„Dear Jaemin,“ your father speaks, voice carrying through the entire room. „We are so glad you made it. Tell me, young friend, how was your voyage? Pleasant, I hope?“

Even his voice sounds dreamy. „It was, thank you! Your country is as beautiful as always. I‘m glad to be welcome as a guest.“

Your mother laughs that. „You‘re always welcome,“ she says, and to an untrained ear, it would sound normal. Only her daughters hear the nervous undertone in her regal voice: the slight worry that Jaemin wouldn‘t want any of the princess, only paying a visit for friendship‘s sake...

Your father‘s kingdom has always bordered to the kingdowm of the Na‘s. To others, that would be a reason to fight. To your families, it was a chance at friendship over generations. The Na clan and the (l/n) clan have always supported each other, lending a hand when the other was in need and treating the other like family. Marriages are unusual, though. There was no need to join the two kingdoms together, but maybe it was time for change since for the first time in long, there are no sons in the lineage of your clan.

Maybe Jaemin has come to use that chance.

Everybody in the room is staring at him. How could they not? It was like an angel had walked into the room, even though his unusual blue hair stuck out like a sore thumb. Maybe he‘s going through a rebellious phase. The color suits him really well, anyways.

All eyes are on Jaemin, but the prince‘s eyes are on you. Past Soyeon and your sisters, Jaemin‘s gaze has wandered to the littlest princess, and he tips his head to the side in curiousity. Like this, he looks like a puppy. Sohye, your third-oldest sister, steps aside to reveal your hiding place, hand landing on your back to push you forward. Your alarmed gaze is met by her own stern one. The meaning is clear. Get out there.

„Who are you?“ Jaemin asks. Your heart stops.

Your father looks at you. His eyes are filled with pride, but also worry. He‘s not used to someone paying attention to his youngest. „This is (y/n),“ he introduces you, and Jaemin steps closer to take your hand. As his lips meet the back of your hand, you notice how he enjoys the way that you‘re blushing.

So he does know how good-looking he is! Kind of attractive, to be honest.

You bow your head in respect. „Pleased to meet you, Prince Jaemin,“ you greet him, and the smile he gifts you with makes you dizzy. It‘s like looking at the sun for too long. Your mother‘s gaze burns on your back. „Oh, the pleasure‘s all mine, I assure you,“ he responds seconds later, sun meeting his ocean locks and making them glimmer in the light.

His beauty is off the scales. Literally. There‘s not a way to measure how fast your heart is racing right now because of it.

When the young prince lets you go, your hand still feels warm. Your father grins and claps a hand on Jaemin‘s back, leading him away from the women with the promise of good alcohol waiting outside. The second they are out of sight, your sisters rush to you, curiousity painted on their faces.

„Do you think he likes you?“

„Do you like him?“

„Isn‘t he sooo pretty?“

„Girls,“ the queen sighs. She‘s the last one to approach you, arms crossed in front of her chest. She‘s trying really hard to seem composed, but you can see the excitement in her eyes, the silent hope of giving away a daughter. Any mother would be blessed to have a son-in-law like Na Jaemin. „He was just asking for her name, not her hand in marriage. Let‘s not get our hopes up. Things like these take time.“ Your mother hums. She can‘t keep up the act for long, though. „But do you think he likes (y/n)? Just out of curiousity.“

Curiousity. You, too, would like to know if he‘s as curious about you as you are about him.

❀ ❀ ❀

The servants come rushing into your room in the middle of the night and for a split second, you think the castle is under attack. But who in their right mind would smile while they’re being attacked? No one. Not your servants, atleast. They giggle and cheer as they lock your door and sit on your bed, tapping rhythms onto your blankets. “We bear good news, princess!” Jina, the youngest out of the bunch, speaks up.

You rub your eyes, still hazy from sleep. The moon is the only thing casting light into the chamber, giving everyone in it the appearance of a ghost. “What news would be so amazing that you’d cheer around like this?” you mutter, but you don’t want to spoil their fun. They’re in an exceptionally happy mood.

Haseul, who’s still wearing her work attire, inches closer. “I was the first one to know, princess,” she whispers, as if it was a state affair she’d be exposing. Her eyes look like jade stones when the light hits them just right. “The king and the foreign prince, Jaemin, they were walking in the garden and speaking rather loudly. I couldn’t help but overhear... and I’m very sorry for listening in, that was rather rude of me...”

“Haseul!” Jina cuts in, begging the older one to get to the point. The gardner clears her throat. “Right,” she laughs. “I couldn’t help but overhear the prince asking for his daughter’s hand in marriage... if she’d like to have him. He said, and I quote, ‘If she’d want to be mine as much as I want to be hers, there would be nothing more that’d be making me happier’.”

Your shoulders drop.

Of course he’d want to marry Soyeon. Really, it was a silly daydream to think that anyone would cast away your father’s precious kingdom at the low cost of one marriage. Any second now, they’ll tell you that your sister’s getting married and someone will finally come looking for you, and not the crown...

“And the king asked him, ‘Has Soyeon gotten into your head already?’, to which the young prince replied ‘My king, I know this must be rather ungrateful of me and if you want to reprimand me then please go ahead, but I’m asking for youngest, for sweet (y/n). If (y/n) feels the same. Otherwise, I’ll stay as planned for the next few days and then return to my father’.”

All servants look you in the face, waiting, hoping you would be as happy as them. You can barely register the news. Slowly, very slowly, you raise your hands and pinch your own cheeks. Once, twice. When nothing happens, your mouth falls open.

Jaemin wants to marry you. Someone actually looked you in the eyes and liked what they saw.

“Oh my god,” you whisper. Then, louder: “Oh my god! He wants me to marry him!”

The words work like a charm; the entire room fills with squeals and laughter, and you grab your girls to pull them onto the bed with you and hug them close. To any other princess, that would be unacceptable. But you’re not any other princess. You’re (y/n), with nothing to inherit but the kindness of your father and the loyalty of your mother, the stars in your eyes, Jaemin’s heart in your palms.

And if he wants it, you’ll give him your own on a silver platter.

❀ ❀ ❀

For once, you’re actually nervous about your appearance.

You tug at your hair, pull at the dress you’re wearing. Is your jewelry too much? Is the perfume annoying? Maybe lavender doesn’t look good on you. Yeah. Maybe changing into something nicer would be better...

“What are you doing?”

You turn around. It’s the new girl - the pretty face without a name. She smiles at you, hands pulling you away from the mirror to sit you down on a stool. You watch her reach for a comb and lean your head back as she starts untangling the knots in your hair. “I’ll braid it for you,” she says, voice as smooth as silk, “if you tell me what’s gotten you so nervous.”

You hum. “You haven’t given me your name yet. If this keeps up, I’ll just have to call you ‘friend’ instead of your name, and that gets rather confusing.”

“I feel like I’m being blackmailed.” The woman snickers. She divides your hair and starts braiding it into a side bun. Her touch is careful, soft. It takes her a few moments before she speaks again. “My name is Soojin. I was born and raised not far from the castle, and I’ve always dreamt of working here. There was this nice little princess everyone admired...” She moves to grab some fixing needles. “.. and I heard we were close in age. Naturally, my interest was piqued.” Carefully, they’re inserted into your hair. It looks really pretty, if your mirror isn’t fooling you. “And here I am.”

“Soojin.” You test the name, letting it roll off your tongue. “I like that.”

“And I’d like to hear about your fidgeting now.”

“Now who’s being blackmailed?”

Soojin giggles again. It sounds really cute when she does it, and you turn around to face her. The name fits, weirdly. You can’t explain why, but it just does. “I think the prince is going to propose to me,” you explain, heart racing again. The back of your hand tingles at the memory of his lips. “Haseul overheard him asking for my father’s blessing to marry me.”

“Leaving so soon?” She pouts, but it turns into a smile. You reach out to hold her hand. For a second, she’s taken aback by the physical affection, but gets used to it rather quickly. “I’m joking. I’m very happy for you, princess. Prince Jaemin is a good man. He’ll court you properly.”

“Thank you, Soojin.” You stand up, previous insecurities forgotten. Somehow, talking to Soojin had helped, and you’re calm now, the excitement making your heart flutter like a hummingbird. Other than that, you’re pretty tranquil. “And if you think I’d leave you behind like that, you must not have heard enough about me. If he .. really proposes, you’re moving with me. If he wants it or not.”

Soojin tips her head back to laugh heartily. “That sounds like a good plan.”

Your father had asked you to meet him in the garden, so with a last hug to Soojin, you depart from your room and begin rushing towards your favorite place in the entire castle. You spent your entire childhood prancing around inbetween the many plants and flower beds, even sitting down often to receive botany lessons from the gardners who worked there to keep your favorite flowers alive. You love the idea of planting something and helping it bloom by caring for it, just like your parents did with you. With their love and support, you grew into a confident woman that knows what she wants, and how to get it.

Flowers were your first love, in a sense. Maybe, if you‘d be lucky, the relationship between you and Jaemin could bloom into your last love.

The garden is unexpectedly empty. Your father is never late, unlike you, getting distracted by every pretty thing. The colored glass in the many hallways. The carnations displayed in the throne room. But there‘s another thing that‘s catching your eye right now: Na Jaemin, standing a few feet away from you, lots of gardenias in his hand.

„You‘re here,“ the prince speaks, heavenly smile spreading on his lips. You nod, heart skipping faster. Was it possible for a human person to look so beautiful? How come a single look from someone can make your knees feel so weak? It takes all your strength to walk to him, and a little bit more to look into his eyes. His gaze is warm, full of adoration.

It makes you giddy.

Jaemin lets his eyes wander over your face before he plucks a single flower out of his bouquet to put it behind your ear. The giggle you let out at that makes him laugh, aswell. Being with Jaemin feels so ... natural. Perhaps if you get to know each other better, this silent admiration could grow into something more. „I heard you like flowers,“ he speaks. „So I went and bought some for you. I hope you like them.“

„They‘re beautiful,“ you tell him, accepting them with the biggest grin on your lips. You‘d bet all your money your father told him about your infatuation with everything that blooms.

The wind tousles Jaemin‘s blueberry-colored hair. „They don‘t match your beauty, though.“ When his fingers brush past your cheek to put your own locks behind your ear, it sends electric currents down your skin. It‘s a pleasant feeling. „If you‘ll allow me, I‘d like to get to know you a little better, princess. For example, did I get your favorite flower right? What‘s your favorite time of the day? How is it that you‘re so cute?“

A heavy blush settles on your cheeks the second he compliments you, and Jaemin has the audacity to laugh at that. When he offers you his arm, you take it without hesitation, clutching the flowers in one arm and him with the other. „You did get it right,“ you admit. „The rest you‘ll have to find out over a cup of tea.“

❀ ❀ ❀

Days stretch into weeks as Jaemin spends every single minute he can spare with you.

You know now that Jaemin has a sugar tooth, and he kisses you on the cheek everytime you bring him candy to a meeting. The first time he did, the servants who were secretly spying almost passed out, which led to the king finding out about it. It was funny watching Jaemin apologize to him, but as soon as your father had turned around, his lips were on your skin again. He lives for the affection; it‘s easy to wrap him around your little finger by disheveling his hair or locking pinkies with him. You even do it in front of your parents and siblings, even though you still sometimes hide your hands behind the expensive material of your dresses. Jaemin grins at your sneakiness.

Though the prince learnt very quickly that gardenias were your favorite flowers, he suprises you with new bouquets often. Tulips, daisies, roses - every flower he sets eyes on makes him think of you, and he can‘t stop himself from buying them. You once spent an entire afternoon making flower crowns out of the many bouquets he buys you, and the second you set it on his head and call him „your king“, he drops anything and everything to cradle your face in his warm hands and kiss you all over.

It‘s no suprise to anyone that the first time your lips meet his, it‘s under the dreamy moonlight in the royal garden.

Jaemin‘s kisses get addicting. Despite being taught to act accordingly as a princess, you find yourself reaching out for him too many times than you can count, and it ends with you ressembling a cherry and both of your lips being swollen. (Soojin spends many hours covering up the many marks on your neck. Really, you should be grateful she‘s so talented with powder and paint!)

It finally happens when Jaemin takes you to see the ocean.

He helps you climb down the rocky path towards the beach, your dress always raised as to not rip the precious garment. „Maybe I should‘ve told you not to wear such a long gown before secretly taking you here,“ Jaemin snickers, arms curled around your waist. He presses you against his side while he carries you like someone would a baby, and you try to fight the embarrassment of his arms being just below your rear. Not like you don‘t like them there.

„That would‘ve been quite helpful,“ you grumble. Jaemin leans his head on yours when you hide your face in the crook of his neck, the cold wind of the ocean making your cheeks freeze up despite the warm weather. The sun is sending its‘ last rays of light over the horizon, but it’s still hot. Jaemin is dressed plainly, while you‘re parading around in what could be considered a ball gown. Well, not really. It‘s a thin, pretty dress that exposes your collarbones, but it has a train.

Obviously, you‘re very excited about all the sand that‘s going to ruin it.

Finally, you reach the beach, but Jaemin‘s neck is so warm. You‘d fall asleep like this, if it weren‘t for said man disturbing your slumber. „Look up, princess,“ your lover mumbles into your ear, the sound making goosebumps appear on your skin. He just has that effect on you. You raise your head and gasp, and the man in your arms laughs at the reaction.

„Do you like it?“

„I love it! Jaemin, it‘s wonderful!“

When you were smaller, your father had taken you and your sisters to the ocean. You remember splashing around in the shallow water, ruining the clothes you were wearing and making your parents burst into laughter. The many sandcastles you built. Your first swimming lessons, the first time you were taken into deeper water. You remember it all.

But this takes the cake.

Jaemin‘s scent mingling with the ocean breeze. Warm hands that hold you up for you to see everything. Miles and miles of water stretching out infront of you, the sun setting and painting the waves pink, red and orange. Beautiful. Absolutely beautiful.

You don‘t even notice Jaemin setting you down, even though his lips on the sweet spot below your ear are a very good distraction from the sight in front of you. „What‘s hindering you, love?“ he asks, hands letting you go so you can bunch your skirts and walk towards the ocean. You leave him behind, adoration evident in your eyes.

This is perfect, you think. What you don‘t know is that it‘s going to get even better.

When you turn around to point out a ship leaving the port to Jaemin, you‘re greeted by the sight of the man of your dreams on one knee. He looks at you like you were the most beautiful view around here, and your knees almost buckle at the love and admiration you find in his eyes. He‘s so honest. When you look Jaemin in the eyes, you see every corner, nothing hidden. Because he trusts you. He wants you to have it all.

You‘re the one holding the keys to his heart. It only needs to be made official.

„(y/n),“ he says, voice trembling. Never has he been this nervous before. „My princess, my love. Whatever you‘d like to be called. In my eyes, you‘re already my queen. I was blessed by the universe the day I met you, and it only got better when I got to know the person behind those pretty eyes. Your heartwrenching laugh. The glimmer in your eyes when something makes you excited. The never-ending kindness that you treat the people around you with, no matter who it is. The first time I set eyes on you, your adorable face and the curiousity in your eyes as you hid behind Princess Sohye, I already knew I was head over heels. My heart has belonged to you for a long time, (y/n), without you even knowing it.“

You let him take your hand, squeezing it tightly as the tears run over your face. Here he is, holding a speech about his feelings for you, when you‘re about to drop to your knees yourself and spend the next few years about the love you hold for him in your entire body. He kisses the tips of your fingers, the back of your hand and lastly, your ring finger, lips lingering there for a few seconds.

„I want you to take it,“ Jaemin admits then. „I want to be called yours. I don‘t want to be king if it doesn‘t mean you at my side as the queen. I don‘t want to be Jaemin if it doesn‘t mean belonging to you, soul and body. I‘m asking you, (l/n) (y/n), emperor of my heart, would you like to marry me and make me the happiest man alive, for the rest of my life and beyond?“

You don‘t even answer. You fall head-first into his arms and lay him down on the sand so you can kiss his gorgeous face, and you accept the kiss he delivers to your lips without hesitation. All your feelings and your gratitude, you pour it into this kiss and straight into his heart.

„Of course I want to marry you, Na Jaemin,“ you whisper against his lips, turning the key in its‘ lock, sealing the deal forever. „I was getting rather impatient waiting for you to ask.“

[royal-confessions]

“After seeing the 19th century from the collection of Marylou Whitney which is said to have been Sisi‘s getting sold at Sothebys, I am feeling sad that we‘ll Never see how it’s worn by a royal, how it sparkles and especially how the florals en tramblant move with the wearer.” - Submitted by Anonymous

[hopeurokays]

@oliviarodrigonetwork | colors event

day 6 : purple

royalty, wealth, power // and we‘ll never be royals

[i-just-love-spop]

Of babysitting and (potential) kitchen fires [Chapter two]

Chapter one

Summary: Bow is a great dad and also extremely tired, Catra is officially never getting used to teleporting (and in massive denial about why the cat connected to her feelings is nesting), and Glimmer and Bow have a lot of cuddling to make up for.

[Shameless post season five Adora and Catra both want kids but haven’t talked about it yet-fic that was supposed to be a one shot but isn’t anymore. Starring: the best friend squad, two Glow/Glimbow children, Melog, cuddling, a bit of angst and, of course, the best friend squad teasing each other.]

Disclaimer: This was originally posted on my Ao3, EleenaDume, which I would love to source, but tumblr is driving me insane and apparently one of the reasons why my posts might not show up in the tags could be external links, so I’m trying it again without the link. If you want to check if I’m really the same person, I’ve added this account to my list of other accounts on my Ao3-profile.

Angie was finally asleep, her tiny head of curly brown hair cuddled against her father‘s chest.

Bow was beyond exhausted, but he was happy.

She looked so cute when she was asleep.

...Admittedly, that wasn’t saying much because she was also very cute when she was awake. But he liked seeing her sleeping so peacefully.

His kids were incredible.

He would have been happy just hugging his wife and daughters until the end of time.

Speaking of his wife, he really, really hoped she would be back soon. She’d already been pretty tired before the meeting, and that had started hours ago.

Neither of them had been sleeping much these past weeks, but even though he did his best helping the Queen of Brightmoon with her royal duties, there were things she had to do that he couldn’t – Bow wasn’t a sorcerer, exactly, and Glimmer loved connecting with the people of her kingdom by teaching them magic –, and others that he could have helped her with, but that she didn’t let him do because she was stubborn.

She drove him insane sometimes... but on the other hand, he loved how determined and strong-willed she was, just as much as he loved how giddy with excitement she still got about the simplest of things, even after all this time.

Glimmer was amazing. Sure, she had her flaws – but really, who didn’t. There was nothing Bow would have changed about the woman he loved, even if he could have. And there was nothing better in the galaxy than for your wife to also be your best friend, Bow was certain of that.

He was still contemplating whether or not he should put Angie into her crib because even though he had just spend over an hour trying to get his daughter to sleep, there was a part of him that longed to keep her in his arms just a little longer...

He almost jumped when the entire remaining best friend squad suddenly popped up on the bed behind him completely out of nowhere.

Most of the time, he was used to it and wasn’t startled anymore – Glimmer had been teleporting everywhere from a very early age on, her randomly popping up out of literally nowhere wasn’t exactly new to him –, but he had been so lost in the moment that they had really, really startled him.

“You know, we could have just walked, Sparkles,” Catra groaned.

She had gotten used to a lot of the weirdness since she’d first befriended them, and even learned to enjoy a lot of the weirdness – Melog was amazing and had helped her heal a lot, and the food here was amazing, and she still didn’t know what the heck the waterfall in the room she shared with Adora was for if it wasn’t for showering, but it looked nice, so she wasn’t complaining – but the teleporting was the one thing she would probably never get used to.

It made her dizzy and kind of sick, and she was always completely disoriented after it, even when she knew where they were going and had been there before.

...alright, maybe Adora hugging her and rubbing her back to make her feel better afterwards did make it somewhat bearable, but that was the only thing she liked about it, and it wasn’t like she needed any excuses to touch her wife these days.

She still leaned into the movement, Adora lovingly drawing circles on her back until her queasiness subsided.

“...sorry, I just couldn’t wait to get to bed. It’s been a really long day, and now I just want to get some sleep.“

Glimmer smiled at her sympathetically, then just collapsed backwards onto the mattress.

“Angie is actually asleep for once, so go ahead and sleep, yeah? I can go get her later tonight if she wakes up. You look exhausted.”

Bow sat down next to his wife, gently running his fingers through her hair, still holding their daughter in this other arm.

Glimmer smiled softly, her eyes already halfway closed, then look his hand in hers, squeezing it lovingly.

“You’re incredible, but you need sleep just as much as I do. Luckily for us, Catradora offered to take care of Angie for tonight, so you can just hand her over, and then we can peacefully cuddle for the next five to seven hours, what do you say?”

Catra and Adora both still blushed furiously whenever someone called them that. Scorpia had used it once after seeing them together several years ago, and somehow it had stuck.

“I told you to stop calling us that,” Catra grumbled, head still cradled into Adora’s neck.

Glimmer just grinned.

“Never happening. You two are basically attached by the hip at this point.”

“I think someone is asking for some more of the PDA that annoys her so much the next time we go on a double date,” Adora said, winking, a smug grin spreading all over her face.

“Oh stars I love you so much.”

Catra kissed her wife lovingly, and this time Adora was neither pulling back nor complaining, so either she had decided that the glitter was worth it or the taste was gone. Not that it mattered. Catra was just happy about getting to kiss her again.

“Are you actually going to babysit or are you just going to stay on our bed making out all night? Because if it’s the latter I’d much prefer it if you could just take this back to your own room,” Glimmer commented, giggling wearily as she snuggled into her blanket.

“Yeah, sorry, you’re right, we- we’ll take her and let you two sleep,”

Adora said, once again speaking way too fast.

She gestured at Catra to take the baby, then picked up the crib.

Her wife was sure normal people didn’t just carry around cribs like that, but the child needed to sleep somewhere and it would definitely not be the pillow nest that Melog had built.

Catra kept on telling herself this was just because they missed having a family and wanted one, but at the same time, she knew that wasn’t it.

Of course Melog wanted to have a family, she knew that much from the talks they’d had with each other over the years... but she also knew that Melog knew it was pretty much impossible they ever would.

Which meant Melog nesting actually mirrored something else. Which definitely, definitely meant Catra had been spending too much time with Arrow.

She banned the thought all the way to the back of her head, still not exactly ready to face what she wanted because of all the potential grave mistakes and the memories that came along with it.

...Bow handing her the baby wasn’t exactly helping her forget, though.

He touched his daughter’s face tenderly one more time.

For now, Angie was doing a surprisingly good job at sleeping through their talking. Maybe Catra and Adora would have an easy night with her.

“You’re going to spend the night in your aunts’ room, alright? Your sister loves them, and I’m sure you’ll love them, too. You three haven’t exactly spent a lot of time alone with them yet, but you seem comfortable enough around them to sleep on their room tonight, alright? Mommy and I love you so much, and we‘ll miss you. I hate letting you out of my eyesight, especially now that you’re still so small, but your aunts are great and I would trust them with my life, so there’s no one else in the entire universe that I’d rather leave you with. And if anything goes wrong, mommy and I will be right here, okay?“ He messed up her curls a little when he stroked her head. “See you in the morning, baby girl.”

Glimmer was full on sobbing, damn it, she was too tired to be crying but Bow being so emotional over their kid made her heart melt into a puddle.

Adora had tears in her eyes as well.

Catra was too mesmerized by her niece snuggling into her chest to care about anything else.

“We’ll take good care of her, don’t worry.”

He nodded.

“I know you will. And... thank you.”

Adora smiled.

“Anytime.”

“I can’t believe Adora just kidnapped our bassinet,” Bow chuckled as the door closed behind their two best friends.

“Really? I absolutely can. I mean, this is Adora we’re talking about,” Glimmer commented, giggling.

The lights were off now, a calming dark surrounding them – not that it ever got entirely dark in here with the curtains not fully closed and the light of the moons and the stars shining through the window.

The stars... the thought never failed to amaze Glimmer. The thought that they were the first people on Etheria to see the stars in a thousand years was just... incredible.

“You... might have a point.”

He laughed as he sat down on the bed beside her, the soft mattress immediately giving in under his weight.

“Feels weird, doesn’t it? It’s only been a few weeks, but sleeping without her in the room already feels... off, somehow. It’s so quiet all of a sudden.”

“Yeah.” He laid down beside her, facing her, and took her hands in his. “I miss her.”

“No kidding. Did you have to make me cry?” She cuddled close to him. “I love you. I love you so much.”

“I love you, too.” He smiled at her. “And now I believe we have a couple of weeks worth of sleep and cuddles to make up for.”

“Yeah. And maybe some... other stuff tomorrow, once I’ve slept properly.”

She gave him a quick kiss and smiled at him, clearly moments away from drifting into sleep.

He smiled.

“We’ll do whatever you want, love,“ he whispered, lovingly stroking her hair. “Now let’s get some sleep.”

“Can I be the little spoon tonight?”

“Of course, my Queen.”

He kissed her forehead and pulled her close as she turned her back to him, gently covering both of them with the soft blanket. Glimmer snuggled against him, her head resting against his neck.

She’d always been the most comfortable when she was close to him, although it had taken a while for her to entirely grasp what it was she was feeling.

And just like that, they fell asleep in each other’s arms, and finally got a decent night of sleep for the first time in weeks.

[grison-in-space]

the scene in which I fell in love with TAZ: Graduation

...which is to say, Fantasy Accounting.

You see, no matter what any powerful king or influential lord would like you to believe, no one has infinite riches. Whether you have one copper in your pocket, or one million gold, all finances have limits. There used to be a time when kingdoms were constantly competing to outdo one another. Sometimes it was with lavish festivals, and sometimes with unnecessary wars. The royals never thought of the impact this had on their coffers until it was too late.

These were highly unstable times. Kingdoms rose and fell in the spans of decades. Workers went unpaid, and whole villages would starve. Then began the golden age of accounting. Kingdoms, guided by teams of accountants, began to think in terms of cost and benefit! Rather than hurling money around, they spent strategically, and invested wisely. Wages were paid on time. Funds were set aside to cover those who found themselves unable to work, and infrastructure was maintained.

This stability saved us... except there was a downside: it was incredibly boring. 

At which point the gentle-owl bursts into a complex explanation as to what everyone does for entertainment and stories to fix the boredom, but now with careful attention from city accountants to make sure that funds balance. I would love this shit to death, except then we get to the scene with Justin’s Firbolg, who has no concept of property. You get this character who maybe doesn’t know very much about the culture he’s found himself in, and he 

It’s such a beautiful illustration of why things like IQ tests are so culturally mediated: because there all these assumptions about why they work and how you are supposed to approach the situation. Without those assumptions, you wind up with a very unhappy firbolg trying to solve a problem in very reasonable ways while a very ruffled instructor desperately trys to force the student to reason like the instructor does by ruling out all of the suggestions the student offers.

Plus the scene is hilarious. 

Aarakocra: Now, looking around this room, I see amongst us, uh, many nods, knowing smiles... clearly, you are all well on your way to becoming expert accountants. Uh, let‘s go around the room. We‘ll ask some questions and see what everyone already knows. I'll pick at random. Uh, there. Master Firbolg. Tell me what you already know of accounting.

Firbolg: I... [sighs] Uhhhhhh... nothing.

Aarakocra: Oh. [pause] No—nothing?

Firbolg: I...mmm... [pause] Where I come from, one does not... own... all... own. Why would one have more than the others?

Aarakocra: Sweet bird in heaven...

Aarakocra: Um... where to even begin? Uh, for a system of trade. Uh, so that one might exchange one‘s goods and services for someone else‘s goods and services, to strengthen relations between communities as they share–and by share, I mean sell–what they have to someone else? Uh, for many reasons. I—what—I—I don‘t even know how to begin to answer this question! Um... surely, you must own something! You—the clothes you're wearing. Those are yours, yes?

Firbolg: [reasonably] Not if you want them.

Aarakocra: I do not. Uh, just to—I don't know if you're asking rhetorically,but just to establish, I do not want your clothes.

Firbolg: It is well.

I love the firbolg a lot. The scene goes on from there, eventually prompting the Aarakocra to simply dismiss class.

The transcript can be found here. 

[firenationskydominion]

Chapter 12: The Essence of Ozai

Ozai sat next to her. He remembered her making love to him the previous night. The thought of her made him smile. She held his hand and he felt loved. He felt weird looking at the throne room where he spent so much time. How lonely he had been. First during the audiences with his father. He shuddered. An then as a firelord himself. He was sad and yet somehow detached. So much had happened in the meantime, his time as Firelord seemed like a distant dream. He had suffered and mourned his loss of status, his sadness and pain were etched in his heart and yet the wounds had healed and so had the scars. And he felt loved and at home. He was over it. He watched the footage. Something was not right.

 O:        Stop! Go back!

 M:        This is not a movie, Ozai! I‘ll summon the spiders.

 The spiders went backwards.

 O:        Stop now! Look! There should be a large doorway here where this ugly curtain is.

 M: .      ..OK... Let‘s see if the spiders find a loophole.

The spiders scattered all over. Finally they saw a footage of one spider which crept through a tiny gap in the wooden doorframe. The picture came clear.

Several people were positioned around a table. They were all neither alive nor dead but in a state of suspended animation. As if time had stopped. Zuko was there, but no Azula or Amon.

 M:        This is creepy! We must rescue them. Azula would not be able to do this, but Amon... And we must find out where Amon is! As they are suspended in time they will not notice if five minutes or fifteen days have passed, but after a week their brain will start to deteriorate.

O:        This is a trap, they want us off the ship. I know Azula. She played Amon to get us to leave the ship. She knows that only you can rescue them. Once you’re down they‘ll attack us and take over your ship. Ten thousand men and laser guns will destroy the Earth kingdom and will only leave ash... she wants to end what I had started.

M:        We must break our own patterns. Do the unexpected. Azula still sees you as the Firelord who wants to rule at any price. I am convinced she is doing this for you.

O:        Azula sees herself as heir to the Fire throne. She expects you to defend the weak, to rush in and rescue Zuko and the Fire council.

M:        So are we supposed to just leave?

O:        That would be unexpected. I have told Azula that my interest in the Fire Kingdom is gone. What good is a firelord who can’t fight an AgniKai? I am a realist, I don‘t follow childish dreams.

Ozai sounded disappointed, but he had his feelings under control.

O:        I would rather explore new worlds with you. I want to move forward, not dwell in the past like her.

M:        What are you implying?

O:        Look, she thinks you‘re my plaything, she does not know that we are betrothed. She thinks my loyalty is with her. Once you go down to rescue Zuko, she‘ll capture the ship with Amon and she‘ll get rid of you.

M:        She might well try...

O:        What would the most outrageous thing be that I could do?

M:        Forgive Ursa and Ikem?

O:        No, that will never happen...

M:        You're not the only one in the world who had a nasty divorce, love. You have to learn to get over it. If this is not an option, you could maybe team up with Aang?

O:        I could try to... He has nothing to fear from me.

M:        If we could only move the whole table party without waking them...

O:        We cannot ask the Earthbenders. Firenation is at war with the Earth king. That would be treason. I may have given up on my royal ambitions but I am not a traitor to my people.

M:        Good. The avatar then. First we‘ll hide the ship. Then we‘ll fly to the northern air temple.    

Mya summoned Eternity and told her to navigate the ship to the other dimension by herself. She gave the command to the second officer Rhea Brume. Eternity would return in a fortnight would then try to summon Mya, Ozai or Amon. If none would be responsive, Rhea would take up command with Eternity and leave for Earth. 

Ozai and Mya boarded one of the bigger pods and set direction towards the northern air temple. This time they used their stealth mode. After seven hours of flight they reached the northern air temple where they were welcomed by ten combat ready airbenders led by Aang. 

Mya:     Avatar Aang! We‘re here in peace, please listen to us, Zuko is in danger! Azula and Amon have frozen him in time and they want to steal my ship. I have hidden my ship but I need your help to rescue Zuko.

Aang:   Why should I believe you? You‘re sheltering a fugitive.

Mya:     He is not a fugitive. We had an agreement which Zuko broke. Ozai redeemed himself with his sacrifices on the asteroid which Zuko acknowledged and yet he imprisoned and even tortured him. His own father! I admit, Ozai here was a jerk of a father as Firelord, yet Zuko almost killed him.

Aang:   Is that true?

Ozai:    Yes. You took away my bending. In combat I am as weak as a newborn batkitten. I can fight as a man but I stand no chance against benders of any kind.

Aang:   I did take away your bending powers to save other people. If you have truly changed your powers will return.

Ozai:    They have returned if I need to rescue someone or need to bend fire for peaceful reasons, but not to defend myself.

Aang:   Hm... Maybe you should talk to the Lion Turtle? Show me, can you bend fire now?

Ozai:    Why would I?

A:         Because you‘re a firebender, that‘s kind of what you do? You need a reason? You really have changed...

Ozai smiled and closed his eyes and tried his best. He produced a little flame. Then he looked around and saw Mya‘s shining eyes. His flames increased. Finally he focused on a rock and threw a lightning.

 O:        See that works fine, but if you‘d attack me I couldn‘t use it against you.

 Aang was thoughtful.

 A:         What do you expect me to do?

 Mya:     We need to rescue Zuko. For this we need to give Azula a surprise she didn‘t expect. If Toph and Bumi rescued him, it might end the war! But Ozai as former Firelord cannot partake in it. Toph will not listen to us, but to you. If you request it it will be an impartial request and we can stay out of it. 

Aang agreed to meet with Toph and Bumi. We took the pod to the border of the fire nation where we were supposed to meet with Iroh and June. We approached the remote hamlet Iroh had suggested we meet at.  

O:        By the Firesages, I know this place! I have been here as a child!

M:        What place is this?

O:        My mothers ancestors came from here. It has been long abandoned. She hailed from the fire sages. There was a place here we were never allowed to go... 

Ozai ran forward past the houses to the woods in which we found the entry to a cave. Ozai lit a fireball and entered the cave. 

O:        I have wondered about this all my life. 

M:        Shouldn‘t we meet Iroh first? 

O:        I am certain he is waiting in here! This is the cave of the fire sages.  

We walked through a narrow tunnel which led us to a hall. Ozai lit a lantern on the wall. All lanterns were connected by oiled ropes and the whole room lit up. Ozai was in awe and so was I. The hall was lined by huge statues of former fire sages and in the center there was a fire pit. Human remains lay in the pit. 

Ozai stumbled back, his voice broke. 

O:        They sacrificed humans. Blood sacrifice! That‘s dark magic, it‘s the biggest sin. 

Ozai was pale as a ghost and surprisingly disgusted. I had seen worse on my travels in space and once more I realized how sheltered this world was from the real atrocities in space. 

M:        I wonder when this happened. 

A voice came out of the dark: 

„This abomination was Zozins doing. He was the one who started the sacrifices of the sacred children. Azulon carried on the tradition. He killed all the airbenders here.“

 Iroh emerged from the dark followed by June and Nyla. 

Ozais voice was frail. 

O:        Brother, why didn‘t you ever tell me. This would have changed everything.

I:          Are you sure it would have, Ozai, my overambitious and ruthless brother? Are you sure you would not have continued the tradition of our family?

O:        I...

I:          When you told me to go to exile with Zuko I felt that you cared about him and wanted him safe by my side and out of the palace. You did not want him to become YOU. And yet look where we are now. He IS your blood, not that man’s son.

O:        I have changed. I will make things right. And if it’s the last thing that I do. Sacrificing blood at such a sacred site is an abomination. We are cursed. I need to break this cycle.

I:          You would have used it and you would have told Azula, which would have been even worse.

O:        We need to break this blood magic. But how?

M:        How did this place look before the blood sacrificing started?

I:          The statues of the fire sages and the center court. But not the altar or the remains. But I am not sure...

M:        Aang would know. He could summon Avatar Roku and he would know more about all this. 

Ozai ran out of the cave, Iroh followed him. In the meantime June and I investigated the cave. The statues of the fire sages were old, there were remains of about a hundred people scattered all around them, half of them children. It broke my heart. I had seen many things, but this was heart-breaking. Behind the statues, there were wooden crates and rusty old weapons. Ozai and Iroh returned three hours later with shovels and a cart. We started to clear the center of the cave by moving the remains and ashes into the crates. 

At this moment we heard a loud thud outside. We all hid behind the statues, combat ready. People were approaching. Nyla started wagging her tail. Friends?

 Aang and Toph entered the cave. 

M:        Aang! What are you doing here?

Aa:       I felt a grave imbalance in the spirit world and Avatar Roku spoke to me. He told me that Ozai needed my help.

O:        You came for me?

Aa:       I am the avatar for everyone. Even for you and foremost you. You needed my help most, always. The avatar snd the Fire Nation always had a special bond. I wish I had been there to guide you when you were a child.

O:        I am glad you are here. We found this here... 

Ozai pointed at the center and he was unable to explain himself, so Iroh took over. He told Aang and Toph about Zozin and Azulons crimes and the horrific sacrifices they had done - including the slaughtering of the air nomads. Aang was appalled, tears ran down his face. 

O:        I cannot change what my grandfather did, but I need your help to prevent that it ever happens again.  

Toph:   Let me do this, I’ll wreck this place for good!

O:        No, Beifong! This was a sacred place for centuries before Azulon desecrated it. We need to clear it.

Aang:   I will ask Avatar Roku for guidance. 

Aang sat down and meditated. We all sat on the ground around him. 

Roku:   This is why I fought Azulon, he committed heinous crimes and destabilized the spirit world.

Aang:   How can Ozai fix this?

Roku:   You need to give the victims their proper burial by dispersing their ash in the air, the altar must be destroyed, the temple cleaned by fire by both Firelord Ozai and General Iroh.

Aang:   Firelord Ozai?

Roku:   Yes, he is now wise enough to rule Firenation as the king he should always have been. He is the Firelord appointed by the Fire Gods, blessed by the fire spirits. Zuko will fail because he is not Fire incarnate. 

Aang:   Ozai doesn’t want the throne. And he cannot fight his Agni Kais. 

Roku:   You have the power to return what you took. To mend the broken link, to help him find his connection to his element. 

Roku vanished and left Aang back confused. 

M:        What did you see?

Aang:   I now know what we must do.  

Aang ordered us to take all remains outside. He then asked Toph to smash all the remains to dust and break the altar into rubble. He then went into the Avatar state and airbent high into the sky creating a wind tunnel which sucked all the ashes up and dispersed them high up in the stratosphere. In the meantime Iroh and Ozai burnt the cave until there was no oxygen left. They ran out gasping for air and collapsed outside. 

I held Ozai who was deeply moved.

O:        I want to leave with you, my love. Far away. Really far far away from this place.

M:        I love you, Ozai. No matter where we are. You are not alone in this.

Aang descended and his face was wet with tears. I hugged him. Ozai apologized and Aang looked at him with a strange look in his eyes.

Aang:   You feel my pain. I feel your suffering. Since that day when I took your bending power we are connected.

Ozai:    I wish I had known you when I was younger. We might have become friends. I needed a friend like you.

Aang:   Will you leave this world when all this is over?

Ozai:    Yes, once Zuko is established as Firelord again, I‘ll leave with Mya for the stars! 

Aang looked at him with a very sad face, walked up to him and hugged him. 

Aang:   I am sorry, Ozai, you have another fate. He went into the Avatar state and put his thumb on his forehead on his third eye. I screamed.

 M:        Noooo! Don‘t kill him!

Aang returned to normal and Ozai stumbled away. I ran to Ozai and held him. He was alive.

 M:        What did you do??

Aang:   I gave him back his powers. Now it‘s all up to him. If he has truly changed, our world will find peace. If he hasn‘t we will all die. Toph and I are going to the Firenation capital to rescue Zuko.

June:    Before you leave! Nyla has found out about the whereabouts of Amon. He is being held in the Temple of Fire on Ember Island.

Mya:     We will get Amon out. Only I can fight him, if he has turned.

Ozai:    Toph, Aang, move Zuko and the others to Ember island, my house has a boat house where you can hide them and do hide the entrance to this cave. This shall remain our secret, so that my children never get tempted to use this place. Aang and Toph earthbent the entrance shut for good.  

Aang and Toph left on Appa to pick up Bumi in Omashu. They arrived in the middle of rebuilding efforts which Bumi was coordinating.  

Bumi:   Look, the asteroid destroyed the merchant quarter. It landed on the cabbage shop and whole Omashu stank of burnt cabbage for a week.

Aa:       What happened to the merchant?

Bumi:   He got insurance money and left for the Fire Nation.

Aang and Toph explained Zukos situation to Bumi, but he declined to help. 

Bumi:   We are at war. Helping him would be treason. But kidnapping him would be a heroic feat, dear Toph. And as you are technically „stealing“ him, you should bring him to Omashu instead. 

[anotherlifefic]

Chapter 37: Back to Life as it was

I took Link along on Glory, since Epona was still in the city stable, and together, he, Zelda and I made our way back to Hyrule. I took a long, deep breath of the fresh air as we rode along the shore of Lake Hylia. It felt so good to see the lush, green grass again. And the sun! How I had missed the sun! I looked across the lake and saw a family of Zora play in the water. If Link hadn‘t been in such poor shape after his imprisonment, I would have stopped to nap in the grass and maybe take a dip in the lake. Just enjoy all of the things Ganondorf had destroyed in the future. But Link needed to see a healer, and I wanted to see Gareth again. My sweet, darling son.

We only took occasional breaks, but it still took us two days until we finally stood in front of the castle again. We stopped when we noticed the group of people standing in front of the gate. Naboru was the first to notice us. „There are our heroes!“, she called out, waving at us with a wide grin. „You‘re all back!“, Zelda exclaimed. Her eyes darted to Impa, who gave er a motherly smile. „You‘ve done great, Princess.“ „You‘ve all done great!“, Darunia shouted in his booming voice. „Too bad nobody but us remembers!“ I shook my head. „I think it‘s better that way.“ Princess Ruto looked at me, still some hostility in her eyes. Then she turned away. „You did okay, I guess.“ I smiled at her. Princess Ruto and I would probably never be friends. But I was okay with that. „Memory or no memory, how about we celebrate our victory before everyone returns home?“, Saria asked. Zelda rubbed her chin. „I think I could arrange something. But all of you should return home, first. And I will prepare a celebration of all of your return.“ Then she turned to Link and me. „Would you mind staying in the castle for a while? Link probably needs a lot of supervision from a doctor during his recovery, and...“ She paused for a moment. „...I just really want have the two of you close to me right now.“ I leaned over on Glory, making sure not to lose balance, and hugged her. „Of course we‘ll stay, Zelda.“

I brought Link to the royal doctor‘s office. And while Dr. Tori was taking care of him, I took his hand. „Darling, can I leave for a moment? I want to go pick Gareth up.“ Link gave me a weak smile and stroked the back of my hand with his thumb. „Yes, please. I want to see him, too.“ Just then, Zelda entered the room. „That won‘t be necessary. I just told a servant to go fetch the woman who cared for him while we were gone.“

A few minutes passed, during which I almost cried from the anticipation. I had missed my little boy so much, and now I would finally be able to hold him again. I jumped up as soon as the door opened and the gardener stepped in with Gareth in her arms. This was it. I was just a few steps away from holding my baby again. „There you go, mistress“, the woman said as she handed him over to me. I had to take a few deep breaths before I could tell her:„Thank you so much for taking care of him.“ „Oh it was nothing. Your boy is such a sweetheart!“ I held Gareth a little closer. „Yes. Yes he is.“ Then I returned to Link‘s bedside and asked:„Do you think you can hold him, Link?“ Link held out his arms, and his eyes became watery once I had passed Gareth over to him. „Sorry that I‘ve been gone for so long“, he mumbled, gently rocking the sleeping baby. „I swear that won‘t happen again.“ Zelda joined us by the other side of Link‘s bed, and gently put her hand under Gareth‘s head to help support it. „Your son is blessed to have the two of you.“ Then she looked up, smiling at both Link and me. „And so am I.“ „Aw, Zelda. I‘m already sentimental enough as it is.“ Too late, there were a few tiny tears running down my face. I was just happy to have my beautiful little family all in one place again.

The days after our return were incredibly busy. All of the races in Hyrule were in an uproar about their beloved leaders returning. I helped Zelda with the preparations for the ball the was to be held in celebration for the sages while Link was still recovering from his imprisonment. And finally, the day had come. The most important people of Hyrule were gathered in the ballroom of the castle; ministers and priests and nobles. I was wearing my green silk-dress and Link his silk-tunic. It was pleasant callback to first days of our relationship. And we stood among the guests as Zelda welcomed each of the sages. First was Princess Ruto, wrapped into a shawl of sheer, deep blue fabric that made her look almost ethereal. Upon her head she wore a golden headdress with amethysts worked into it that had the same hue as her eyes. Then came Impa, dressed in an exquisite purple kimono with black cranes embroidered onto it. Darunia, without any ceremonial armor or clothing. He let his mere presence speak for itself. Little Saria, in a lovely green dress and a flowercrown upon her head. Naboru in her pink bedlam, but with a crown-like headpiece worked around the jewel on her forehead that let everyone know that she was the queen of the Gerudo. And finally, Rauru, now in his human form, wearing his usual clerical garb. Once they had all taken their place in front of Zelda, she softly cleared her throat before raising her voice: „My dear friends. Words cannot express the kind of joy I feel about your return. Your disappearance had left a hole in all of our hearts, and now, it is like each race of Hyrule has regained a piece that has been sorely missing. So let me say, in the name of all of Hyrule: Welcome home.“ „Welcome home!“, all of the guests said in unison; some bowed, among them Link and I. Zelda lifted her hands to gain the attention of all attendees once more. „And now, let us be merry in honor of those that returned… and those who now watch over us from the great beyond.“

As the music began to play, Link and I retreated to the sidelines, where Zelda stood, talking to Impa. The Shiekah turned to us and smiled. „The Hero of Time and his wife. Finally, we can meet in person.“ I curtsied. „It‘s an honor, Lady Impa.“ „It‘s good to know that you‘re back, Impa“, Link said cheerfully. „Well.. it‘s good to know that everyone is back. But I‘m sure Zelda will need you to watch her back for her while she‘s busy being Queen.“ „I‘m sure she will. I trust that you will attend her coronation as well?“ „Wouldn‘t miss it for the world“, I replied, smoothing down my skirt. The crowd parted slightly, and Princess Ruto came up to us, giving me a sour look and then turning to Link. „Link, would you please dance with me?“ „Uhm… I‘m not sure it would be appropriate, since I‘m married and-“ „I think it‘s a great idea. I was just about to ask Princess Zelda for a dance, anyway.“ I smiled. Princess Ruto let go of his arm and glared at me. „Link doesn‘t NEED your permission!“ „You‘re right, he doesn‘t. I‘m just saying that he doesn‘t need to worry about me being jealous.“ Link shrugged. „Okay, then I don‘t see why not.“ Ruto gave me one last withering glare before tucking her arm into Link‘s and leading him off onto the dancefloor. I bowed to Zelda. „May I ask for this dance, Your Highness?“ Zelda chuckled. „Happily.“

She was a fantastic dancer, and managed to even out all of my small mistakes. While we were twirling on the floor, we passed Link and Princess Ruto, just as it was time to swap partners. „Do you want to dance with Link now?“, I asked Zelda. She smiled and her cheeks flushed a little. „I‘d love to, but then who will you dance with?“ Before I could answer, the uncomfortably familiar feeling of scales burying into my skin interrupted my train of thought and Princess Ruto dragged me off, leaving a slightly befuddled Zelda and Link behind. Ruto wasn‘t as gracious a dancepartner as Zelda had been. Her movements were absolutely perfect, but she made no attempt at concealing my lack of skill. „Just so you know, I still hate that you and Link are married. And I still hate you. He deserves better.“ Her amethyst eyes bore into mine. Then she sighed. „But I also know when I am beaten.“ „Oh?“, I asked. „Where does that change of attitude come from?“ She huffed. „It‘s not like I can change the way he feels. The whole time we were dancing, he kept looking at you. He thought I didn‘t notice, but I did.“ Now she let go of me and disappeared into the crowd, leaving me standing awkwardly in the middle of the dancefloor, until I quietly slipped to the sidelines again, where Saria stood. „What‘s with the sad face?“, she asked kindly and motioned for me to bend down. Then she plucked a white moonflower out of her flowercrown and tucked it behind my ear. „Today is a joyful day! You should be smiling!“ I bit my lip, not wanting to unload my emotional baggage onto her. She had already seen and lived through enough. „Uhm. I don‘t know. Maybe it‘s just the stress catching up to me. There wasn‘t much time to unwind with everything going on right now.“ „Oh, that‘s understandable. Do you want to go out onto the balcony? Get some fresh air?“ I sighed. „I‘d love to.“

The sun was slowly setting, and I took a deep, relieved breath. „Ah… this is much better.“ Saria out onto the cityscape and then back to me. „And now, won‘t you tell me what is bothering you? I can tell it‘s not just the stress.“ „Well… it kinda is. And I‘m sure that what I just lived through plays a big part in it. But mostly… I‘m not sure where to go from here. I can‘t just go back to being the person I was before all of this started. I spent the entire journey doubting myself and wishing to turn back time and just be a farmhand or even a wife and mother again. But now, going back to that would feel like regressing. And another thing is… So many things happened in that other future that brought Link and I closer. And all of those things were erased now, and he doesn‘t remember.“ „Maybe he doesn‘t remember, but I‘m sure he still feels it.“ She took my hand and gave me a kind smile. „He loves you. I can feel it. Don‘t you feel it, too? It wasn‘t too long ago that this love was sown in his heart, but it took root and now it is on its way to becoming a beautiful tree.“ She closed her eyes. „Speak of the devil. There he comes. I‘ll leave you two alone.“ She walked off, and I turned my head towards the horizon again. I didn‘t have to see or hear him. I felt that he was there, his gaze lingering on me, before he came to stand next to me. „Are you enjoying the party?“, he asked gently. My lips twitched into a half-smile. „It‘s… overwhelming. How about you?“ „Way too many women want to dance with me“, he said, wiping some sweat from his brow. „I passed Saria on the way here and promised to dance with her later. But first, I wanted to spend some time with you.“ He took my hand and kissed it. „Come on. Dance with me.“ And before I could answer, he pulled me to his chest and led me into a slow waltz. I leaned my head onto his shoulder, taking in his scent, and just followed his movement. I was glad that nobody would look at us out here on the balcony. This was a private moment; other people would have just made it less intimate. This way, I could just bask in the perfection of the moment. Together, at last.