#she doesn't have bad intentions just really high expectations | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

pixiesfz · 5 months

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hey! could you maybe do a sam kerr x matildas!reader where sam and reader get into a huge fight before a game and refuse to talk to eachother, but then during the game reader gets hurt really badly and it absolutely terrifies sam causing her to just snap out of it and comfort the reader, feeling really guilty about their argument

when I saw this request I had just been dreaming of the best not cringe and actually like valid argument that doesn't put either reader or Sam in the right.

give up? s.k

plot: Though you and Sam play internationally together you play in Barcelona for the champions league but Sam casually brings up a contract for you in the WSL which leads into a fight and then a very messy game.

warning: angst, swearing, stubborn people, blood, injury, LONG

It was known that your contract with barca was coming to a close, many people thought you would stay and you would if it wasn't for girlfriend.

You're loving girlfriend Sam Kerr who isn't just your fiancé but also your national captain.

You grew up together as you were both called up to almost all ages of the Matilda's camps. "annoyingly slowly" Caitlin says you two realised your feelings for each other before you got your first signings out of Australia.

You were scared when she went to America that you would have to break up but somehow the two weeks of Australia camps every three months held you two threw it.

So Sam knew you were the one for her and you knew you could never imagine loving someone more than you loved Sam.

So last year when she flew up to Barcelona 'secretly' (mapi accidently told you) to propose you said yes immediately.

Jessie played in London and you in Spain it was an unspoken problem that the two of you rarely brought up but it hurt every time you had a bad game and couldn't crawl into Sam's arms.

A phone call wasn't enough.

So Sam started talking around to WSL leagues secretly and vouching for you, you didn't need vouching though managers would dream for a defender like you, you were clean and patient with Umpires.

You still gloated on how you had never received a red card ever.

You loved Barcelona and the girls that you played with you had many memories there, you helped Alexia with English sometimes in interviews when she was confused, she mainly picked you for partners when doing Media duties so you could help her with anything.

Mapi had even once convinced you to get a matching tattoo with her, just a small one under your boob of a cartoon like soccer ball with your number next to it.

Barca had been amazing for your career, you won a lot. Which you loved but you never had Sam to celebrate with as she was in London.

Moving to a different club would be a hard decision and Sam was at her high at Chelsea being one of the captains, you weren't a captain but you couldn't help the selfish intentions that came over you.

Sam had been having conversations with clubs such as Arsenal but also her own.

Emma didn't deny when Sam said you would be a great fit in the team and you and Millie defending together would practically be a brick wall.

But she didn't say anything until the first night of your last tillies camp of the year.

It was dinner and you were all sitting with the 'trio', Steph, Katrina, Hayley and her three children.

"What are you doing about your contract?" Mackenzie asked you as you looked down at your plate and played with your pasta "uhm-"

"Chelsea's keen on her" Sam piped up and you quickly turned your head to her, you went to say something but Steph beat her to it "I heard Jonas talking about how she's going to the WSL" she teased and you shot her a confused look which she didn't see.

Alanna made comments about man city as Mackenzie did West Ham but you looked down.

You hadn't made any choices.

You and Sam hadn't talked about it.

Did she expect you to just drop your career?

You were quiet for the rest of dinner before finishing quickly and going up to your shared room with Sam.

"Did I say anything bad?" Alanna asked as she was the last to speak "no" Sam said and looked at her food "I'll go check on her" she said before following after you.

You were in the shower when Sam came in, your thoughts were clouded by questions.

A knock sounded at the bathroom door when you got out "babe?" Sam called out "Can I come in?" she asked and you shook your head "no"

"why not?" she asked and you started to get changed "cause I'm naked"

"Oh c'mon I've seen you naked before"

"I'm not in the mood for jokes" you called before zipping your (sams) Jumper up and walking out, brushing past Sam's shoulder.

"Alanna thinks she said something, are you okay?" she asked and stepped forward to you.

"How did Jonas apparently know I was interested in the WSL if I haven't made any decisions yet?" you asked and Sam stopped walking "I- I don't know" she said and you rolled your eyes "you do know!"

Sam slumped "Okay I may have been telling teams in the WSL that-"

"That I what?, want to leave my team of seven years? Sam we haven't even talked about what I should do, this isn't something that you do alone" you said, using your hands dramatically, something Sam noticed you do when your serious.

"You never want to talk about it!" Sam shot back "every time I bring it up you talk about something else"

She was right but you were too angry to realize that at the moment.

"What so you go behind my back?" you scoffed "Sam this is my career do you expect me to drop it so I'm with you!" you yelled and Sam stood back "well do you not want to be with me?" she asked softly and you groaned "of course I want to be with you but you don't seem to mind the fact that this change will only effect my career"

"I'm sorry I actually want to be able to sleep in the same bed as my fiancé for more than two times a month!" Sam yelled and you shut your eyes before storming towards your bag.

"What are you doing?" Sam asked "Grabbing my stuff and going to Steph's room before I say something I'll regret" you say as you packed your bag.

"What like maybe how we shouldn't get married?" Sam said sternly as the tears that you had been holding rose to your eyes, you froze, your back towards Sam.

You zipped up your bag before you turned to Sam who look defeated.

"yeah" you sniffed "exactly that".

You didn't mean it and neither did Sam.

When you left the room and closed the door you sobbed, your brain screamed at you to go back and to kiss Sam as hard as you ever had before and apologies.

You would move to any club for her.

You would do anything for her.

When you reached Steph's room, she didn't question why you were crying, just held you as you cried into her arms.

In the morning of the game you woke up feeling like shit, your eyes were puffy and red and there was a note on the door from Steph saying she would bring up breakfast up for you.

You smiled at your friends kindness and got dressed into your kit before going into the bathroom and trying to get rid of any signs of the tears that melted your skin the night before.

You wondered if Sam felt the same way.

When Steph walked down stairs for breakfast Sam perked up from the corner of the room, expecting to see you but Steph shook her head at Sam and instead grabbed two of everything so she could bring it back up to you.

"You look shit skipper" was all Mackenzie said as she patted Sam's shoulder.

When you and Sam finally saw each other in the morning was when you were getting into the bus but luckily Katrina's eager toddler was adamant on sitting with you on the bus.

"Why have you been crying?" Harper asked you in a sweet tone as you sat at the back with her "I said something bad to someone I love" you admitted and Harper snuggled into you which you accepted.

You didn't see how Katrina and Sam were watching you together at the front of the bus.

"What did you do?" Katrina asked and Sam crossed her head "I can't talk about it right now"

You fell asleep with Harper cuddling you pretty quickly as you lacked sleep from how long you had been up crying.

Katrina was the one to wake you and Harper as Harper cried up to her mum "No matter how many times I cry to you mummy I still love you!" Harper yelled as she snuggled into her shoulder, Katrina looked at you, a knowing look in her eye.

"That's okay bubba. People say mean things when they're upset sometimes, even to people who they loved."

You sighed as you smiled at the older woman 'silently' thanking her.

You didn't talk to Sam before the game started, you knew she didn't like to have big chats before going on the field even if her mind was screaming to go up to you and apologies.

You felt off, you didn't feel the butterfly's that you felt in the tunnel as you usually did but instead you felt dread.

You tried breathing in and out but nothing was helping and Sam was at the front of the line so you couldn't see her.

You needed her to tell you it was okay.

You were playing Canada and they were out for revenge because of the World Cup, they wanted to send off their captain with a win.

It wasn't until the 45th minute until it happened.

The ball was in Canada's square and Cloe Lacasse had kicked the ball as hard as she called as Mackenzie ran up and blocked it but the ball went past her fingertips and almost into the goal until you ran and jumped, your foot in the air as you kicked it into the opposite direction.

Well at least you hoped it did, all you could see was black.

The stadium fell silent as they watched your head connect with the goal post, players near you hearing the smack that had sounded out when you collided.

Sam was on the other side of the field when it happened.

Her breath hitched as some players looked at her in sorrow as she watched her fiancé, the love her life, the called 'princess' of Australia bash her head against the metal post.

She'd never felt herself move so quick in her life as she ran towards you, any memory of last night gone as she saw your body on the floor.

You were stirring awake when Sam reached for you "baby?" she asked, grabbing onto your hand as the medics arrived, you didn't reply your head was stuck in the air as your eyes travelled around frantically, you heard your thoughts too loudly.

'tell her you're okay'

but you couldn't.

So when the medics brought out something to cover the bleeding on the side of your head, Sam let her tears drop out "I didn't mean what I said last night" she said in tears but you only squeezed her hand before the medics took you off.

It wasn't until after the game, Sam didn't congratulate any of the Canadians and didn't interact with any fans, she went straight into her car and drove to the hospital that you had been taken to.

She waited in the waitiing room for twenty minutes which felt like two hours until a nurse walked out.

"y/n y/l/n"

#woso #woso x reader #matildas #sam kerr #sam kerr x reader #chelsea wfc #lol

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raven-at-the-writing-desk · 8 months

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Alot of people are saying Meleanor and Maellus are the same when she shot everyone with lightening. But I think she is more extreme. At the very least Malleus hasn't hit anyone, though their have been some close calls. But he has never threatened to hurt sebek, Lilia, or Silver. Melenore and Maellus are similar, but I think Malleus is more in control. Lilia does reprimand him if he acts up or he loses thought.

Mmm, well... I don't really think it's fair to say one is considered "worse" or "better" than the other in terms of control of their powers and emotions??? They're a lot alike, but they're also at completely different points in their lives and under much different circumstances. We also get a very limited perspective of one (Meleanor) over the other (Malleus), who is very much a prominently featured character.

Both Meleanor and Malleus in their basest forms are temperamental, and their bad mood stirs changes in the weather. The old adage, "like mother, like son" is very applicable here. The main difference between them is that Meleanor, the parent and adult, has more responsibilities and lived during a warring period.

We hear tales of Meleanor acting up and letting her powers flare out of control in her youth, and that parallels what we know of Malleus's childhood (ie when he froze the castle and many servants). They are the same. However, I would say that Meleanor's emotions running high is considerably more understandable (at least during the instance when we actually physically see her in the dream), considering that she's in the middle of a war and the life of herself and her unborn child are at risk. She's not just "shooting everyone with lightning" because she's lost her temper for no real reason. Meleanor is mad at Lilia and the soldiers for not showing up to defend her and her child. She had NO reason to believe her men would be returning with humans (Yuu, Sebek, Silver, Grim) in tow (who would be much more susceptible to being hurt from her magic than a fae), so I don’t think she was shooting at them specifically; they just got caught in the crossfires. I have no doubt that Meleanor could have done some serious damage with her magic, but since she's expecting only enemy soldiers or her own to walk through that door, I do feel like she has her reasons??? Like, if it's enemy soldiers, then those humans are for sure fried. But if it's her own soldiers, then she's most likely expecting them to be experienced enough to avoid her strikes (since they are, after all, trained rigorously to protect the royal family). Seriously striking down her own soldiers in a time of war only hurts herself, doesn't it?? Meleanor's anger focuses on Lilia and Lilia alone when he refuses her order to take her baby and leave her to fend for herself. I don't believe that she seriously intended to harm Lilia in that moment; she needs him alive and well to ensure the safety of her son. If anything, it feels like she summoned that lightning (the second time) to try and scare Lilia into running or as some kind of "test" to prove his readiness to do so. (Keep in mind that Lilia at this point was ALSO holding Malleus's egg while Meleanor was trying to blast him; do you think she would honestely try to decimate her friend and her baby when she just told Lilia to make sure the baby was kept safe?) This only got messed up because Silver (bless him) leapt in the way to defend his father, because to him, the danger still felt very real. Comparatively, Malleus gets upset over what are much more mundane things simply due to being a student during a time of peace (not being invited somewhere, Lilia getting a text message from a friend, etc). He does an excellent job of self-regulating most of the time, but he also has bad days when he expresses intent to harm those that anger him or at least considers it (ie the Magicam Monsters during the first Halloween event, Rook in his PE vignette (until he realizes Rook is purposefully provoking him), Rollo in Glorious Masquerade for deceiving him). Maybe he hasn't ever threatened to hurt Diasomnia, but that doesn't mean everyone is safe. Look at book 7, he did not hesitate to turn his magic against the people he cares about to force them to comply with his desires. Malleus is immature and doesn't know a lot about the world, nor is he able to easily cope with change or things that already escape his understanding, which results in these kinds of incidents. And like... even if Malleus doesn't mean to hurt people, that doesn't negate the harm he does do, does it? Just because he "never hit anyone" with his magic (at least not that we know of) doesn't mean he can't hurt in other ways. Think of the worry he caused in Endless Halloween Night or as far back as when he (accidentally) froze various servants in the castle. All of book 7 is also indirectly hurting people; he's not allowing them to live their lives and is deciding it FOR them. Even if Malleus doesn't see what he's doing as harmful, the truth of the matter is that it IS harmful. (Mr. Shroud even surmises that without food or water in those bodies forced to sleep, the dreamers might actually die.)

To quickly touch on Lilia, he shouldn't be used to excuse or to hand-wave away any bad behaviors on Malleus or Meleanor's parts. Yes, Lilia is an important person in both of their lives. Yes, he tells them off for their actions--but 1) his words are not always taken into consideration, understood, or followed through on by Malleus (such as in the Dorm Uniform vignettes) and Meleanor, and 2) there are also instances when Lilia enables them instead of discouraging them from acting out. (Endless Halloween Night comes to mind for Malleus.)

Malleus, like his mother, HAS to learn how to better control himself or risk repeating these same mistakes with or without Lilia. Let's not forget too, it's Malleus who Overblotted, a condition which arises mainly due to negative emotions. I don't know if I would call that a demonstration of being "more in control", but rather a sign of Malleus’s immaturity and inability to accept change 💦 ADDENDUM: it is implied later in book 7 that Meleanor also Overblotted, but not out of negative emotions but rather that she overexerts her magic when fighting.

We don’t know as much about Meleanor or how much of her childish tantrums (like the incident where she blew up part of a castle) carried over to adulthood. We also don’t know enough about her to understand if she ever compromised the safety of others like how Malleus did in his own childhood (again, the whole ice thing). When her castle is under siege, she takes control of the situation and makes a plan, then confronts the Silver Owls for a duel. She’s somewhat selfish in her insistent commands to Lilia, but then again, she has to be—she’s a sovereign with people she desperately wants to protect. Malleus is actually just as immature as his mother was as a child. It's possible to see him as "more in control" because we have so many other instances of him being calm and rational to refer to. Meanwhile, we only hear about Meleanor's destructive rampages via stories and have only one real instance of interacting with her to refer to, and she's being violent for most of it. We have very few instances of her being nice or pleasant to compare to, so by focusing only on what we physically witness, a biased interpretation of her can form. In reality, neither mother nor son is "worse" or “better” than the other—again, the standard for comparison for the two’s present behavior is not equal to begin with.

Malleus needs to be given the time to learn and grow to get to the same position and maturity that his mother reached. He’s still at a point where he’s insecure about his relationships and with the change that comes with the passage of time, not a pillar of control—and that’s just a consequence of his youth and lack of real-life experiences. That’s not to say that Meleanor is perfect or that she’s somehow “more” controlled than Malleus; they're both powerful, demanding, domineering types, which is how the Draconia family in general is described. It’s Meleanor's age and experiences have helped to temper her into a leader who knows what she most wants to prioritize in a live-threatening moment. She still uses force to get her way, but utilizes her powers with a more learned wisdom that deviates from Malleus.

#twst #twisted wonderland #Meleanor Draconia #Malleus Draconia #Lilia Vanrouge #disney twisted wonderland #spoilers #notes from the writing raven #Rook Hunt #Rollo Flamme #Rollo Flamm #Maleanor Draconia #twst analysis #twisted wonderland analysis #twst character analysis #twisted wonderland character analysis

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theflyindutchwoman · 7 months

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Wait, is she touching you? She's touching you, isn't she? Hey, you know what? If she offers you money for sex, I'm gonna win this bet. Look, I am down to do whatever you want. Yeah, you are.

| ANATOMY OF A SCENE - CHENFORD EDITION 4.07 - Fire Fight

What I love about this scene is how unassuming it appears to be : for all intents and purposes, this moment is meant to offset the more serious and dramatic part of the episode. Nothing else. And yet, it hides so many layers… One of them is how it actually gives us an aperçu of Tim and Lucy going undercover together at the end of the season. With the way they flirt here, it makes their practice kiss and all their display even more inevitable. And this is the perfect continuation of Lucy's last UC op, where she flirted with him to pass him the informations she had (and save his life). That their default mode while undercover is to flirt says everything… Those mission really gives them the cover and freedom they need to explore their feelings without revealing their hand. Having Tim go undercover, with Lucy as his handler, is also a perfect role reversal, where the student has become the master. He doesn't once question her expertise : he might protest but it's more out of habit than anything else. It's certainly never out of malice. Now add Tim's baggage when it comes to that line of work… And it brings out another layer. Interestingly though, this side is not explored. The aim here is to ease him into this, without triggering any bad memories the way Lucy's very first op did. This is a short stint, with no high stakes. And this explains why he doesn't protest much when Lucy suggests he goes undercover as Jake in the first place : the fun they have here might have played a part.

Lucy is definitely enjoying this way too much, instantly ragging on Tim's choice of clothes when he shows up at the rendezvous. They haven't even started yet and he looks done already. This is such a good reminder of their first dynamic : grumpy/sunshine. He just can't hide his smile, even in front of her, anymore - like when she recites the UC rules. The walls are down. Also, the fact that she had a jacket ready for him, clearly having expected this to happen, just shows how well she knows him.

But aside from all this fun, there's this undercurrent of tension that rises to the surface when Tim puts the jacket on… or when he lifts his shirt off, showing off his abs… The atmosphere here is so different than when she caught him wearing only a towel at Rachel's place. There is an awareness now that wasn't there yet. And it's even more intense with their close proximity. Or with Lucy having to touch him. It's just so intimate. The looks they exchange… It's electric. It's close to how it felt for a moment at Tim's place… Until he realises that she's placing the mic too high on his chest… Is it distraction? Is it on purpose? Either way, the way she rips off the tape, looking so smug, and his high-pitched scream are hilarious. Her sorry doesn't even sound sorry at all. #sorrynotsorry

And from there, it goes completely unhinged. Only these two would openly flirt and riling the other up while one of them is undercover. Now, to be fair, it started normally, with Lucy coaching Tim. But the second Aston began flirting with him, professionalism went out of the window. Then again, these are the same idiots who were making out 'for work', so maybe it is their definition of professionalism. Tim is trying to remain in-character but Lucy is having the time of her life, listening to their conversation. His smirk when Aston caresses his hand and Lucy comments on it, reminding him of their bet and how he might unwittingly help her win it if their mark keeps this up… They are so flirty here, openly, taking advantage of the situation… And that really lays the groundwork for Vegas. The fact that Lucy is basically whispering in his ear, that he can't see her, brings a certain level of intimacy… And while he is talking to Aston, his reactions are for Lucy. Like his big smile : sure, he is amused by their suspect's behavior, but I have a hard time believing that this isn't Lucy's comments that provoked it. There's such a double meaning to their dialogue… Like when he tells their suspect he is 'down to do whatever [she wants]', with Lucy instantly answering him with her iconic 'yeah you are'… She couldn't have said it in a more lusty tone.

This is all ambiguous, giving them plausible deniability. It allows them to act in a less than professional way, but without any repercussion. Almost as if they're testing the water. And it makes sense that Tim tries to take a step back after this mission, to reclaim some boundaries… Well, for a short while. All of this just comes back in full force when they have to go undercover as a couple… with no going back.

#the rookie #chenford #chenfordedit #lucy chen #tim bradford #4.07 #Anatomy of a scene - Chenford Edition

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tqmies · 11 months

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Can I request Mark + College or Fake dating + prompt 42?

Rush | Mark Lee

Part of Tqmies 1K Event!

college & fake dating au, 42. “Who’s laughing now?” “…Clearly not you. You’re crying, dear God.” wc: 1k Note: why choose an AU when we can have both ?!

"I want to piss off my parents - Which isn't illogical, by the way - so what better way than to drag you into it?!"

"Is this supposed to make me agree?" You quirk a brow, tapping a nail on the desk in front of you. And your wearing a frown, taken aback by the sheer audacity of the male in front of you, who you haven't spoken to in years, asking you for help.

"It'll only be for a bit! I'll parade you around for a bit, make my mom blow up in her chair, and then we'll fake break up!"

"I'm missing the part where I benefit from this.. And why me anyways?" You loll your head to the side, its not like you were a particularly bad influence or anything. You were nice, hard working, and a good student. If anything, you were a mothers dream for their son.

"My mom hates your mom."

Ah there it was, the moment of truth. You and Mark's mom had attended high school together, and from what you know, the two weren't fond of each other at all.

But your mom held no ill intent towards Mark, would Mark's mom hate you? How immature, doesn't sound too far off of what your mom would say.

"Still don't see what I get from it." You shrug, going back to your book.

"You'll get to date me." He points at himself, eye brows raised as he's dead serious. He thought of himself as a catch, why weren't you jumping at him?

You want to laugh in his face.

"And I'll pay you."

"Now we're talking." You nod, not one above being payed off. Hey, you'd done far more questionable things for as little as twenty dollars.

But being faced with someone as affluent as Mark, you're sure you'd get a check out of this.

Which is why you're now standing beside him as he shoves his hands in his pockets, waiting for his parents to get the doorbell. You had to admit it, you were kind of nervous.

Not that you really liked Mark or anything, but you weirdly felt pressured to win over his parents.

The door opens and you're met with Mark's dad, and he offers his a son a curt nod before he turns towards you. "Oh, will you be joining us for dinner tonight?"

The smile is wiped off your face. "He didn't tell you?"

Mark's dad shakes his head, and Mark avoids any direct eye contact with you. Oh you were going to piss Mark's parents off, that's for sure. Mark's dad just turns and heads inside, the two of you following after.

You enter behind him into the kitchen, where Mark's mom is. Her eyes widen among seeing you, "Mark, honey, I didn't know you were bringing a guest."

"Ma, this is my girlfriend."

You expect steam to blow out of her head, for her to angrily rage and demand you leave, to even start cursing out her son.

But she does none of that, instead offering you a warm smile. "It's nice to meet you. Mark didn't tell me we were having guests, or else I would've cooked up something special."

You shake your head, unable to stop yourself from returning the kindness. "The food smells amazing."

Why'd Mark want to piss off such nice people anyways?

The evening goes pretty well, and Mark thinks that he's not getting his moneys worth. He had bet by this time at night that you'd be getting ran out of the house as he got berated for dating you.

But none of that is happening, in fact his mom looks happy as ever. She doesn't mind your mother either, she had to know by now, you had even given her the names of your parents when she asked. So why was she keeping it together so well? Didn't they hate each other?

You tell Mark's mom your major and she jumps up. "Oh wow, so pretty and smart. How did my son manage to snag you?"

You just nervously laugh, shrugging playfully. "I don't know either."

"Mark usually brings home such trouble makers." She shakes her head as she cuts into her food. "It's a relief to see he found someone so good for him."

Mark slams the door as he climbs into the drivers seat, and you can tell he's mad. And really, you can't blame him, seeing as his parent's didn't seem pissed off at all.

"Well, guess your genius plan didn't work out after all, guess I'm just too likable." You make a snark comment, crossing your arms.

Mark leans his head against his steering wheel as you continue.

"Tried to use me to piss off those sweet people! Jokes on you, Who's laughing now?" You mock, facing Mark when he doesn't respond.

Instead you notice wet tears fall off his face, the sound of sniffling as well. You grow confused at that. ".. Clearly not you. You're crying, dear God."

He wipes as his face aggressively as he sits back up. He looks at you as he scoffs. "My parents don't like anyone, okay? Even if they didn't care about your mom, I knew they'd find something to pick at you for. They always comment on my date's outfit or their manners."

"Oh wow, I'm sorry Mark. That's really shitty." You respond.

"But the one time I try and piss them off, they like you?" He says, bewildered. "Not a single bad thing to say? And it's all for a girl that I'm not even dating. God, I'm such a loser, why did I think this was a good idea? How am I going to explain that I let the one good thing I had go?"

You assume he's referring to you not showing up anymore, and for as little as you know the boy, you find yourself sympathizing. "I can always show up again, if that helps."

He nods a little, "Sorry I dragged you into this."

You can't believe you ever agreed to this fake dating thing, but something you tells you that you'll be sticking around longer that you intended.

#tqmies 1k event!#mark lee imagine #mark lee #idk what this #brain fart #mark lee nct #nct mark #nct mark imagines #nct mark drabble #mark lee drabble #mark lee drabbles #mark lee fanfic #nct drabbles #nct scenarios #nct fanfic #nct mark lee #nct dream #nct fluff

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littleeggrock · 7 months

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Dirty Little Animals by Bones UK (from the Arcane soundtrack) is so first couple days feral BOLAS?! To me. Explanation under the cut for anyone interested lol

Like the first verse? "Taste what fell from grace"? They weren't exactly high and mighty on the first island, but they sure had it better there than in literal purgatory.

"You wanna mess around they're gonna take you down down down" - The other teams took this somewhat seriously, but by the end of the first day Bolas was completely broke and decided to go with the rp route, go completely insane, and somehow are still winning, despite all the hangups and deaths they had.

"such a lovely way to burn burn burn" - at the end of the first day there was a solid five minutes of people throwing themselves into the campfire to amass a large pile of bodies

"I've never felt like this before, think I might just want some more" - the amount of all the trauma and just general vibes given off by these specific people was enough to allow bolas to go over the edge and go crazy, alone they've all got their respective RP things going but together the energy bounces off each other as they constantly enable the ones around them, allowing for them to go well and truly insane after Bad provided a catalyst

"the kind of wrong that make you feel right" - so many of the characters on this team are considered morally grey, really none besides Phil and maybe carre have any sort of moral standing, and even then it's debatable, Jaidens close but she's also very easily manipulated as we see with cucurucho, she has good intentions most of the time but she doesn't have them because they are good, she has them because she doesn't want the people close to her getting hurt

"the little death that makes you feel alive" -jaidens complete disregard for her life on day four, willing to die upwards of 30 times (she died ninety four times total but also died from the gas a lot so im not sure how much was spawn camping, figured id play it safe) to cheat and manipulate the other teams for the benefit of BOLAS. Also again the campfire. And the stick fights. They just really like to beat eachother to the death.

"it makes your blood run hot, it makes your spit taste sweet, it makes you feel more alive than you have ever been" - literally just the insanity that's swamped the team, it's been dialed down some since day 4 but it's definitely still there, they are not ok and I love them. Some analogy could be made with the gas masks and the toxic gas, knowing you are immune to something that has killed many, the high of the adrenaline as they run through this fatal fog with little regards for their own safety.

"dirty little animals, beautiful cannibals" - they've brought up cannibalism multiple times and the majority of them (characters, to clarify) say they would be fine with it if given consent first, cellbit's canonically already done it too lmao. You can't tell be that they aren't just a buncha dirty little guys. Have you seen Charlie's skin, have you heard jaiden and foolish barking, all of them screeching muffled at the enemies, or howling in joy

Also for those of you who haven't seen, arcane season 2 got a release date for sometime in November 2024, which is so fucking exciting and it's a lot sooner than I expected

Sorry for the long post the brainrot got to me and I had to write this down somewhere lmao, figured id share with the class

#Qsmp #qsmp bolas rojas #qsmp bolas #Qsmp Jaiden #Qsmp foolish #Qsmp Cellbit #Qsmp Slimecicle #qsmp baghera #Qsmp philza #qsmp carre

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teeth-collecter · 1 year

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The thing I really like about Torchwood is that despite the fact its a spin-off of an alien show it's not about aliens at all. It's a show entirely about humans.

Our main cast is entirely human, and we are supposed to be rooting for them, but none of them are morally perfect. They all do bad things and make bad decisions. But that doesn't make them bad people.

Cyberwoman is a good example of this, and I genuinely think it's a good episode but it happens way to early. Ianto hides his girlfriend in the basement of Torchwood, and this will eventually put the entire team's life at risk. But Ianto never had any ill intentions to begin with. This was all just him refusing to accept the fact his girlfriend was dead, willing to do anything to help her. He was desperately trying to get back the person who loved him, who understood him. Something he really didn't have with any of the other people at Torchwood. The episode is really intense, high with emotion. The episode's only fault is not really establishing any of those emotional moments earlier on in the show, and not really delving into them afterwards.

Same with Tosh in Greeks bearing Gifts. There were so many red flags showing with Mary, almost immediately, but Tosh was so desperate for someone that she could talk to, someone that could understand her, that she ignored all those things. Her using the necklace with her teammates wasn't a great thing for her to do, but you can't really be mad at her for being curious how her colleagues thought of her. And even after finding out that Mary was an alien and just using her, Tosh was still sad that Jack had killed her.

Even Suzie wasn't evil. You find out she had been murdering people, but she was doing it in hopes that she could achieve resurrection, that no one would have to die via alien again. And when she was taking life from Gwen, it had nothing to do with any negative feelings towards her, or the fact that Gwen had sort of replaced her, but she simply wanted another chance at life. After finding out that her one life was all she'd ever get she wanted another chance at appreciating it more. That's why both of her deaths were equally heartbreaking.

I even think that having the team betray Jack at the end of the season wasn't an entirely bad idea. But, a lot like Cyberwoman, there were just too many things going on that were shoved into one episode. But I think the general idea of their betrayal makes sense because the team doesn't know anything about Jack. He never lets them in, never talks about himself, and yet he expects all of them to never question him or his orders. Some mistrust is definitely going to develop there.

All of them being part of Torchwood automatically makes them distant from the rest of society. But they're still human. They still need and value those connections and relationships. That's why the five of them trying to keep an entirely professional relationship doesn't really work. The only way Jack's idea for Torchwood is going to work is if they have strong trust and a strong relationship with one another. Torchwood is a family, not a business.

#torchwood #captain jack harkness #ianto jones #toshiko sato #owen harper #gwen cooper

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yanderes-galore · 1 year

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So for my request there's a story, ok let's go!

So bunny darling is a kind, sociable bunny that works in the library, and is seen as shy, sweet, basically an angel but what they don see is that bunny darling is an assassin secretly, and is. A really good assassin, so imagine puss, kitty an perrito seeing bunny darling for who they really are. But bunny darling needs money [blackmarket] and is only targeting bad people like, really bad people, [I don't want to cause any trigger].

Fandom: puss in boots

Characters: puss, kitty, and perrito

Type: romance and platonic

I'm going to make this short reactions as I'm supposed to only do one character or a rivalry between two not three- I altered things a bit.

Btw, conejo means rabbit. It's spanish, the language I didn't learn in high school I'm sorry.

Yandere! Team Friendship with Bunny Assassin! Darling

Short Concepts/Reactions

Pairing: Romantic/Platonic

Possible Trigger Warnings: Gender-Neutral Darling, Attempted murder, Manipulation, Obsession, Violence, Threats, Forced partnership implied, Stalking mention.

Puss (Romantic)

Puss originally doesn't show much interest in you.

You're a helpful bunny but he's one for adventure!

Not books....

Puss pays you no mind and just thinks you're a librarian.

That is until he becomes your next target.

You see... what Puss got wrong is you're a secret assassin...

... and Puss is a wanted cat.

Your intention is to kill him and take the money for his murder.

Puss can only assume why you're doing this.

Has to be for the money, right?

Like all the rest you want riches!

Similar to him, no?

Puss connects the dots that you were once that shy and sweet librarian.

You put up a good act, don't you?

In an effort to get you to stop Puss starts bringing up deals.

He's an outlaw who can give you riches!

Somehow Puss is going to get you two to stop fighting.

You and him make a deal... you expect him to follow up on it in exchange for keeping his life.

There's tension between the two of you but Puss promises to give you the money you need.

Mostly to keep a knife from his throat.

Puss feels sympathy towards you once he learns more about you.

Instead of being a thief... to provide for yourself you turned to murder.

A feat you did through deception as no one suspects a bunny to kill.

Not even Puss in Boots.

He asks you who you target and you explain it's usually criminals.

Though once you got to know him you didn't entirely see him as a criminal.

Puss could feel romantic or platonic towards you.

He leans more towards romantic though, the cat flirting with you to ease the tension caused between you.

He does adore you and wants to help you out.

He could steal something easy and give the cash to you, sure.

Yet Puss wonders if you'd like to join him.

Call him a fool for trusting a killer, Puss doesn't care.

He thinks you and him will be a great pair.

He'll defend you and you'll never have to worry about money again.

He'll be a hero to you...

Even if you refuse at first... the offer is always there!

He knows you'll accept him some time in the future, even if he has to find a way to encourage you.

"Bunny, if money is all you're after I can help! Just join me, it'll be better than all this murder, right?"

Kitty (Romantic/Platonic)

Kitty would meet you in a similar way.

She doesn't expect the sweet bunny running the library to be a threat.

You simply give the cat a toothy grin and keep your eyes on her.

She has no idea you're holding her wanted poster in your tiny paws.

It isn't until later that you hunt her down.

You're both fast and agile, it's almost an even match.

Kitty may not be a flirter but she is a smooth talker.

She's no damsel in distress.

She can best you.

Turns out she may actually best you.

She may not have claws but she's pretty skilled and fast.

Maybe after she beats you she asks you why you tried to kill her, pushing your smaller body to the ground with her eyes narrowed.

In response you pass her the poster.

You're an assassin looking for money.

Kitty may make a deal similar to Puss.

She's a thief too, if you need money she can probably hook you up with something.

"You need money? Me too, conejo. Why don't you work with me instead?"

You aren't really in a position to refuse due to her grip on your ears and the fact she disarmed you so quickly.

Kitty may rub the fact she bested you in your face.

However, Kitty slowly begins to care for you as a partner the longer the gets to know you.

Who knew a bunny needed to resort to murder to keep their life afloat?

It's sad if you think about it....

Kitty has you help her with theft as that was part of your deal.

You share the profits and actually bond well.

Kitty is happy she managed to make you a friend instead of an enemy.

She's light-hearted with you and cares for you.

If anyone tried to hurt/catch you, she'll defend you.

It's hard to tell if she cares for you as a close companion or romantic partner as she hides her feelings.

Kitty is just hoping she can put her trust in you unlike Puss.

If anyone harmed her bunny... there'll be hell to pay.

"You and me are in this together. It's us against the world, bunny. We need each other's trust... I... I need you than anyone else."

Perrito (Platonic/Romantic)

He may actually be the only one who isn't targetted by you.

Perrito may simply grow attached to you by finding you in the library.

You weren't expecting the overly excited dog to be in your library and don't mind talking to him.

You just wish he'd be more quiet.

Perrito is just obsessive over the bunny librarian as a dog would be.

He easily trusts you and considers you a friend immediately.

"Aww...! You're so cute! You're a rabbit? Oh! Is this your library!? So cool!"

Perrito would probably learn about your actual profession by accident.

Wanting to learn more about you he follows you until you slip into an alley.

The moment you throw on the cloak, fluffy ears slipping through the ear slits on your hood, you look like an entirely different person.

You're startled when you hear a long "woooow!" come from behind you.

You aren't sure what to think when Perrito stands behind you.

"Are you a superhero!?"

Perrito is seen as an annoyance by you for a long while.

You hold back the urge to sigh.

You are no hero.

He follows you everywhere and sees how effortlessly you track down your targets.

Perrito is a bit on edge with the murder but wants to be closer to you all the same.

At some point you just... accept the fact he follows you.

Perrito is like your little... stalker fan.

If you're in trouble then he tries to help you out!

He is the sweetest dog ever and you can't help but grow attached over time.

He is the friendliest one out of the three.

Perrito means well and doesn't mind trying to help you out of trouble by distractions.

The moment you said you considered him a partner?

Perrito's over the moon.

Perrito refuses to leave your side... even if you tried to leave, he'd find you again somehow.

"Ohhh! Are we fighting crime together!?"

#yandere puss in boots the last wish #yandere puss in boots #yandere kitty softpaws #yandere perrito #yandere team friendship

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ambrossart · 2 months

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good morning!!! I hope this week is better than your last, I’m looking forward to the next chapter of Paper Men! I was rereading and noticed that it seems, of all her love interests, Patrick is the only one who doesn’t hold her to this impossibly high standard. I was wondering if you did this intentionally (because I can tell everything you’ve written so far has been) or if this could change? I feel like this is partially why I root for Patrick even though he’s bad news, he’s different than Henry and Vic… he’s openly interested in Evelyn and seems to admire her (admire might be a strong word for him) differently than the other guys have been. idk if any of this makes sense lol. just seems unlike Vic and Henry, he doesn’t need Evelyn to be perfect.

Well, tomorrow (or uh… today, technically) is my birthday, so this week is already gonna be better than the last lol. I was just really busy with work last week, and I'm still getting used to my new writing schedule. Normally, I have a little free time during the afternoon to write, but not anymore. Now I have to do all my writing late at night. I don't love that, but I don’t really have a choice.

Anyway, it absolutely was intentional to have Patrick treat Evelyn differently because I want people to understand why someone like Patrick (who, at first glance, probably doesn't seem like Evelyn's type) might appeal to her, especially at this point in her life.

When it comes to relationships, Evelyn is very direct. If she likes someone, either romantically or platonically, it's pretty obvious that she likes them. Evelyn's not good at holding in her emotions, and that, unfortunately, can be overwhelming for a lot of people. We saw that with Victor when they were kids. Evelyn came on very strong right out of the gate and Victor couldn't handle it, so he kept pushing her away until Evelyn eventually gave up and moved on. Then she got “involved” with Henry, which was a slight improvement but came with all kinds of other problems. And you’re right, he does hold her to an impossible standard. Henry demands perfection and absolute loyalty from his partner; otherwise he doesn’t feel safe. That’s all well and good for Henry, but it’s not exactly fair to Evelyn.

Frankly, Evelyn’s exhausted right now. She’s tired of putting all her time and energy into one-sided relationships. She wants to be wanted. She wants to be desired. So now here comes Patrick, who is very consistent and clear about what he wants: he wants her, that’s all. He doesn’t play hard to get. He doesn’t pull away. And he doesn’t place any expectations or restrictions on her. With Patrick, Evelyn can do whatever she wants. She can be clingy and emotional. (In fact, Patrick wants her to be emotional. The guy’s a leech; he feeds off that shit.) She can’t cross a line because Patrick has no boundaries. It’s basically impossible to make that man uncomfortable. That’s gotta be pretty liberating for someone who’s used to walking on eggshells.

Most importantly, Patrick displays a genuine (or at least a seemingly genuine) interest in her, her life, her hobbies. He asks questions. He listens. He remembers. Does he have an ulterior motive? Of course he does, but does that really matter? Eh, I’ll leave that up to you. 🤷🏻‍♀️

Right now, Patrick is exactly what Evelyn needs, and I think if she ever lets her guard down, she’ll be surprised by how attracted to him she really is.

… which is what Patrick is counting on. 😂

#the man is trash #but we like trash here #answered asks #thanks for the ask!#paper men #ambrossart

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thatonegirlwhowrites · 2 years

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eddie munson x popular reader where they are in a secret relationship and the jock do something mean to the hellfire club and reader stands up for them. maybe jason doesn't take it very well and Eddie then stands up for the reader. Fluffy ending.

Thanks in advance!!

Blush || Eddie Munson

Summary: Reader finds herself in a bit of trouble after standing up for her boyfriend, and Eddie has no intention of letting Jason Carver continue to be an asshole to his girl.

Pairing: Eddie Munson x Popular!Reader

Warnings: violence, angst, fluff, no major volume two spoilers, JASON, bullying, a little bit of blood, grammatical errors.

Notes: loved this idea sm!

1.7k words

Masterlist

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Three more hours.

Only three more hours until you could leave this godforsaken hellhole that is Hawkins High and finally enjoy some time with your boyfriend, Eddie Munson.

You two were most certainly an unlikely pair and the last thing you expected was to fall for the boy who apparently ran a cult. Of course, that was very far from the truth as you were quick to learn that Eddie Munson was the gentlest person you had ever met. Despite the hardships he faced in and out of school, he was always the one to make sure everyone else was okay. Which was also why he convinced you to keep your sprouting relationship a secret.

You wanted nothing more than to show everyone how proud you were to be dating Eddie ‘the freak’ Munson, but he was quick to realize your school life would be turned completely upside down if people knew you were associated with each other. You had hesitantly accepted the rule, but it didn't mean it hurt any less when you heard every popular kid talk down on the entire hellfire club and especially Eddie.

Nonetheless, you pushed through because come every Friday afternoon you could drop the peppy cheerleader facade and just be yourself whilst spending time with the boy you loved. Sometimes you would go to his trailer, and other times he would come over to your house. Your mom had grown to love Eddie and had also been completely convinced she knew who her future son-in-law was going to be.

“Yo, Y/n!” you heard a loud voice coming from your right.

You blinked harshly a few times, bringing yourself back into reality and out of your wandering thoughts.

“Uh sorry, what's going on?” You sighed, looking towards Jason as you realized he was the one to say your name.

It was hard to miss the eye roll that came from him, but you ultimately decided to ignore it.

“If you would have been listening like I asked everyone to do twenty minutes ago, you would know what's going on.” His voice was sharp and cold. Jason had always disliked you ever since you helped Chrissy realize how terrible her boyfriend truly was to her and everyone else. He knew that you weren't like the rest of the popular kids, and that bothered him to no end.

“I am so very sorry.” You sarcastically smiled and almost started to lay your head over on the lunchroom table until he began speaking again, “You know it's fine, I just wanted to make sure you were payin’ attention when we dump a bucket of water on the entire fucking satanic cult over there.” He smirked.

“W-What.” You immediately perked up just as three jocks dropped water-filled buckets over your boyfriend of all of his friends, efficiently ruining their clothes and food.

The lunchroom was filled with gasps, and you could see the anger practically steaming from Eddie.

Maybe it was the fact that you had already had a bad day, or maybe it was the fact that Dustin Henderson and Mike Wheeler looked just a little too sad now that their clothes had been ruined, but you had officially had enough of the bullshit.

“Jesus Christ, do you guys have to be such dicks all of the fucking time?” You stood up harshly as you pushed your lunch tray hard enough for it to fall right into Jason's lap. You hadn't really meant for that to happen, but you weren't complaining that it did.

“What the fuck.” Jason was now the one fuming as he jumped up from his seat and headed right for you. You hadn't been expecting him to come up behind you, but you were sorely mistaken as his foot caught yours, sending you falling nose first into the ground.

You hit the cafeteria floor with a thud, and as if that wasn't embarrassing enough, Jason had poured the remainder of the water right onto you.

Jason had half expected the lunchroom to fill with laughter, but it was dead silent as all eyes were focused on what had just happened, turns out tripping a very well-liked girl and pouring water on her, wasn’t the best look.

You were still in shock over the events that just happened as you clutched your throbbing nose, feeling a bit of blood beginning to fall over your top lip.

That’s all it took for Eddie to lose any kind of composure that he was hanging onto. Within seconds he was in Jason's face,” You know I can deal with the bullshit, but when it comes to her, you don’t fucking wanna go there.” His jaw was clenched so tight, that he thought it might snap.

Despite the pain you were currently in, you couldn't ignore the feeling in your stomach as Eddie stood up for you, much like you had tried to do for him a few moments ago.

Jason only laughed at the sudden bravery from Eddie, “Go sit back down freak, this has nothing to do with you. I don't know if you have been in your little cult fantasy land for too long or whatever, but she doesn't want anything to do with you.” Jason said with an unsettling amount of confidence like he actually knew you.

You had managed to stand up on your feet again, a few steps behind Eddie, “Actually Jason it does concern him considering he is my boyfriend.” You were loud and proud with the label, hoping every single person in the lunchroom heard it, and you were sure they did since there was basically a crowd formed around the three of you.

Eddie looked back at you for a moment, concern was clearly written all over his face at the sight of blood coming from your nose but you gave him the best reassuring smile you could muster.

Eddie wanted nothing more than to swoop you up in his arms, but he wanted to make sure something like this never happened again.

“Let's make something clear here Carver, you ever lay a fucking finger on her pretty little head again, and i’ll fucking cut it off.” His blood was boiling and Eddie fully meant every word that had just come out of his mouth.

He would do absolutely anything to protect you.

“You won’t do shit Munson, you’re a fucking cowar-” Jason was harshly cut off when a sharp swing to the face knocked him to the ground, blood now pouring out of his nose.

You felt a bit guilty, but you couldn't help the satisfaction that swarmed your body seeing him rolling on the ground with a bloody nose instead of you.

“Sorry, what was that? I think you got cut off there.” Eddie was now bent down closer to the floor so he could make eye contact with the blonde boy on the ground. “Choose your next words wisely Jason. After all, I could do a lot worse than punching you in the face considering I'm in a satanic cult, right?”

Jason's eyes got a bit wide then, “I g-got it freak. Get away from me.”

Eddie was content enough with that answer as he hurriedly turned around to you, his eyes running over your body to make sure you weren't seriously hurt.

“Cmon sweetheart, let's get you to the nurse.” His voice immediately took on a gentle tone as he wrapped his arm tightly around your waist and assisted you out of the lunchroom as everyone stood there wide-eyed with several jaws dropped to the floor.

The privateness of the hallways was a relief, away from prying eyes.

“Hold on a second Eddie.” You needed a moment to catch your breath, a moment in peace.

Eddie took this as an indicator that you were in pain, leading him to start panicking a bit, “What's hurting? I-Is it your leg? Your nose? Y-Your-.”

You were quick to cut off his spiral with a soft kiss on his lips. You tiptoed just enough to be able to reach his face as your hands snaked around him for comfort.

Eddie hummed in satisfaction, practically melting into you.

“Nothing hurts. In fact, I feel great and I think we should just skip the nurse's office and the rest of the school day to be honest.” You smile lovingly as you peer right into his big brown eyes.

“Are you sure you're okay?” He cautiously ran his eyes over your face again as he wiped the remainder of the blood off from under your nose.

“I am more than okay Eddie Munson.” You gripped his hand tightly as you started leading him to the exit. He happily followed you.

He looked over at you for a moment, “I'm sorry I got so mad earlier, a-and if I scared you o-or-.”

Your heart cracked slightly at the sadness in his voice, “Babe, don’t ever apologize for putting Jason Carver in his fucking spot. Plus I thought it was kinda hot. You know, you threatening to curse him and all.” You lightly shrugged as Eddie let out a bit of a snort, “They are all so gullible,”

And with that, you guys finally made it out of the school building and to Eddie's van where you proceeded to call your mom and tell her what happened, and you fully expected Eddie to be met with a big hug whenever you guys got back to your house.

“I swear I really think my mom might love you more than she loves me.” You giggled out, leaving Eddie laughing right along with you.

“What can I say? I guess I'm just a charmer.” A playful smirk resided on his face for the rest of the ride, as your hands were still tightly clamped together all the way up until you guys pulled into the driveway

“I love you, Eddie.” You sweetly spoke before getting out.

“I love you too Sweetheart.” a strong blush found its way onto Eddie's face.

You couldn't help but point it out, “It's not very metal of you to be blushing like that Munson.”

The redness only got worse, “You're making it worse.” He felt the warmness of his cheeks with his hands as he pouted.

“I'm sorry baby.”

“I forgive you.” Eddie kissed you gently on the lips.

Despite the events that had happened today, you both couldn't be happier.

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#stranger things requests #stranger things #stranger things imagine #eddie munson #eddie munson x reader #eddie munson x female reader #eddie stranger things #eddie munson x y/n #eddie munson fluff #eddie the banished #eddie munson imagine #eddie munson x you #joeseph quinn #stranger things fluff

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multifunctionalnitroglycerin · 2 months

Text

Leona and Diana Old Lore / New Lore. My take on it

Okay so, I am relatively new to the League community, with barely three years under my belt, but lore is one of the things that interest me the most about it. And well, the dynamic between Sun and Moon coded characters is one I never pass up in exploring. Leodia is arguably my favorite ship from League, but it's mostly the idea of it, with recent executions leaving me feel kinda... meh.

So apart from probably having read every single half decent fic under the Leona/Diana tag on Ao3, I have scourged the internet for their lore and have come across quite a few references of their old one. Never found the complete thing though. And possibly unpopular opinion, I like it better than their current one.

That is not to say that the old lore is any sort of masterpiece, and people could argue that it doesn't set them up to be lovers, but I think with a little bit of tweeking it can become really good. Many of my ideas are inspired from a fic I probably read like 2 years ago, also features an OC named Helena and has a side of Riven's inner struggle, Riven and Diana friendship and Rivelia. (I cannot for the life of me remember the name, I apologise)

My problem with the New Lore mostly, is that it's vanilla for a mountain of warriors and *cultists* it feels almost like High School AU but try to fit it into League, and yeah it's not it for me. Also the co-dependence of their ascension, and just Leona's whole thing kinda sucks. Like I can see how people might see it as romantic and poetic and whatever, that they ascended at the same time and Leona followed Diana up the mountain to keep her safe etc. etc. but that's kinda glossing over some issues especially with Leona's character.

Now the new take on Leona's character is really interesting, and a complete 180 from the old lore and actually the idea isn't so bad, if they ACTUALLY DID ANYTHING WITH IT. Now as a person that definitely doesn't overanalyze literature and fictional characters for fun, Leona's new lore is such an interesting take and could be taken many directions if someone chose to explore it and go a bit deeper that "genocidal close-minded bigot".

At first read Leona is really just that. She does what she is told no hesitation, no questions asked and turns on Diana also no questions asked. But let's take it a bit deeper shall we?

I have no intention to make it as though Leona holds no blame for her actions or that she is a paragon of virtue, cause she is not. But if we dive in her story a bit more we could perhaps understand how she came to be what she is. Because under no circumstance do I think she is that daft. Especially if she was with Diana for years. Some of that curiosity must have rubbed off on her. Then again she could have just ignored everything Diana said about the Moon and her research. I guess we'll never know.

I do not intent to ramble about Leona in this post. But I'll give you some clues as to why her backstory and the whole Targonian premise is important. She is born practically into a cult, or well a religion with really strict and particular disciplines. So already an environment with very particular ideas and particular ways to enforce them. She is the daughter of two really strict and proud parents in said cult, who seem to care more abt her achievements and punishments than anything (Grade A parenting), - She doesn't even send them that letter in the end - and she is the golden child of the Solari. So what do we have in our hands? An affection starved perfectionist suffering from gifted child expectations. NOw take that and put it in the Solari premise of religious fanatism and voila!

(I will probably at some point make a separate post abt this, because I really took a deep dive in Leona's character when writing my Ruination fic - that I wont ever post anywhere probably - and I have a LOT to say)

So in the old Lore the Rakkori are the warriors and defenders of the mountain, a bit heavy on the bloodthirsty side though, hence the right of Kor. A coming of age ritual battle to the death. (What else could it be). Leona being the only one that refuses to kill her opponent and friend, is sentenced to be executed, but before the execution could be carried out, she is claimed by the Golden Sister as the Sun aspect with a beam of golden light.

I feel that Leona's ascension in particular is really important in the old Lore, because in such a warlike culture she was rewarded for showing mercy. She was chosen because she chose mercy over mindless slaughter. Something that could potentially be really important later on, in a mountain where half its indigenous people have slaughtered the other half??

Point 1 I like from the old lore: The Sun chose Leona because she was merciful. (Or had a semblance of a moral compass)

Moving forward the lines kinda blur for Diana, mostly cause I am not sure what I remember is actual lore and what is related to that magnificent fic.

Her curious truth-searching nature is ever present. She discovers hidden texts, burned pages and embarks on a journey of knowledge that leads her to climb the mountain. Only she is in the company of an elderly woman I think? Anyhow, she finds - is lead to - an alcove, an old temple and the relics of the Moon Aspect. Overjoyed at her findings she dons the armor takes it all down to the elders, they call her a heretic, brand her, and intent to kill her, when she begs the Moon for help and ascends. Either her or the moon blast kills every elder in the room she gets blamed either way, and the chase begins.

Diana is at her core an academic and a researcher, that researches. She has her Indiana Jones moment in the mountain and there is a process a ritual to it, instead of I just climbed up saw unimaginable terrors and now I am the aspect of the Moon (over-simplified I know. The climb judges worthiness). There is something about her checking old dusty books, and deciding to brave the climb looking for answers. About her choosing to be helpful -kinda as a mirror to Leona sparing her opponent, Diana, the one that keeps to herself - apart from when arguing abt academics and scriptures consciously engages with and helps a stranger, guiding them up the mountain and helping them along the way when the trip became too arduous.

Point 2 I like from the old lore: The ritual of the process in Diana's research and ascension and the mirroring with Leona, minor though it is, that they ascended - sooner or later - after an act of kindness that contradicted what would have been expected of them.

Point 3 I like from the old lore: The brand. Like it just adds another layer to Diana's character. And is a much better explanation for its presence than Moon magic. Also the amount of complications this act has, its just delicious. I mean THE DRAMA. and ofc THE TRAUMA. I don't think she'd go near a fire for months.

Point 3 I like from the old lore: The independence of the ascensions. It gives us the chance to see them grow and evolve as their own people before the thread of fate that binds them together appears. We get to see one without the other, and that would later make their dynamic more interesting.

But How are Leona and Diana connected?

In the old lore they aren't. I think. Leona is like a blood hound that needs to kill the heretic.

In the fic, Leona's dad was one of the guards in the room when Diana ascended and was killed, which in the context of the story adds a layer of betrayal between them, as up to that point they were lovers. And you know what, I really like that idea. And I was thinking that perhaps we could try to get the best of both worlds. Though it might be difficult to fully develop the idea.

Lore Idea:

So the Rakkor ans the Solari are different factions. Solari = priesthood, Rakkor = Warriors. Leona's family are Rakkori, and they are simple people, her father works as a guard for the Solari Temple, something that is considered a bit of an honor despite that fact that the factions don't rly see eye to eye about everything. Right of Kor happens when they are around 15 (Yes I want to traumatize a bunch of teenagers that train to fight, kill and defend since they could walk) and Leona's story proceeds as we know it. She then gets taken to the Solari temple to be educated in their way and train to become the figurehead of their faith. (Like that Leona has already had the chance to develop some critical thinking, and to experience sth different.)

She gets there and all the acolytes younger and older look at her starry eyed, because the elders told them so and because they see her like a bit of a Messiah. (Plus I doubt a bunch of scrawny academics and priests to be have seen anyone their age with that musculature). All of them apart from Diana, who as always isn't particularly impressed by the paragon in training of the Solari faith.

Leona is relieved to get some normal person treatment, even if it is from the broody girl with her nose in a book half the time, and like the cocky 15year old meathead she is, she wants to show off a bit and perhaps win her favor. Shenanigans ensue and Diana unlike the other people that desperately want to befriend Leona, is not impressed.

Another point of similarity is that Leona - that has ascended already mind you - would have a few questions and oppositions to all that mumbo jumbo the Solari say about the Sun and the Moon. So after she flops exceptionally in one oration or sth class, with saying something positive about the Moon that has the students look at her with horror, and the priest fuming and screaming punishments - light ones, because the Sun chose that clueless miscreant, and he doesn't want to fall out of her favor - Leona manages unknowingly to win inquisitive Diana's intrigue - and favor, (but don't tell anyone about the last part).

A tentative bond forms. It gets solidified when Leona stops a few bullies from beating Diana to a pulp, and the dark haired girl in return helps her pass a class she was having an exceptionally hard time with. Diana - who in my head is a year younger - does eventually get charmed by the surprisingly goofy and sunny disposition of the Sun Aspect in training. (Don't get this wrong Leona will still act like a 15 yo that has had to train and fight every day of her life) Diana asks her countless questions about life outside the temple and they discuss theology together, either trying to help Leona understand, or trying to make sense of Diana's findings. (The Rakkori in my head are far more neutral abt Sun and Moon, more like if there is light and I can see I am happy, whether its the Sun or the Moon. "There was even that one traveler from some big city, Pilt - something was it, that even said that the Sun and Moon are like orbs in the night sky, one is a star rly close to us and the other is like a smaller planet or something, can you imagine?")

The become friends, the Nightless Eve happens, and then they become lovers. Leona starts suffering from all those expectations and the charade she needs to put up, she has more hours with classes and training she gets tutored by the priests, punished more severely when se speaks out of line or says something borderline heretical, yada yada. More people like her and she likes the attention. She doesn't abandon Diana though, and she always defends her. Things get difficult as the years go by but still they persist. (We could include some homophobic sentiment in the Solari, or even sth downright misogynistic, which would add complications with Leona's state as the Radiant Dawn, and the wlw relationships as they would not be seen as real substantial relationships - add asshole trying to flirt with Leona bc her relationship with Diana isn't real cause they are both women- DRAMA)

Leona is 18 passes her final exams, and Diana is 17 when Diana's arc happens. They have a huge fight about faith and contradicting it and if it is worth it. (No one wants to bandage their lover's whipped back that is practically a mosaic of scars at this point, or nurse them to health after sever dehydration - cause yes apparently standing naked in the sun for three days can do that). Diana storms off angrily. Finds an elderly woman in the base of the mountain that needs help going up (Silver sister in disguise). She helps her up, and when they are like 3/4 up and rest cause Diana's everything hurts the woman disappears. She looks around, finds the temple, sees carved proof that the Solari and Lunari co-existed gets the relics and climbs back down excited to show everyone her findings.

Meanwhile Leona has left for an emergency Solari mission or sth, and hasn't told Diana. Diana goes to the priests, they don't believe her, she invokes her right to be judged by the Aspect or sth, the priests pretend that Leona is still around and doesn't want to see or help Diana (Strike 1 of betrayal). Diana feels betrayed and hurt and fears for her life. The priests give the order for her to be branded and executed on the spot. Leona's dad who had been in the room and had met Diana, tries to plead her case from an outsider's perspective. One of the elders reprimands him and threatens him with death.

They brand Diana with the moon Symbol on the forehead, and are about to place her face down in the flames and / or slit her throat, and Iasur can't have her dying thinking that Leona betrayed her (A bit of family honor and afterlife beliefs - honor is a huge deal-, and a bit of a soft spot for his daughter's closest companion). He tries to fight his way to her, and gets killed in the process. Diana witnessing Iasur's murder prays to the moon for help, and seconds before breathing her last breath, she ascends. Pillar of Moonlight and heavenly fire burns everything to a crisp, and Diana remains alone in the middle of the room, barely breathing and clad in the garb of he Moon aspect. She takes one look around her and speeds away from the temple.

Leona returns three days after to find the council and her father dead, the council room in ruins and apparently Diana to blame. On top of that Diana is missing. Leona is presented with the case and believes Diana to be her father's killer. She vows to avenge him and kill the Scorn of the Moon, because her Diana wouldn't do that. It must be the moon spirit. and yes apparently Moon is bad because dad and Diana are gone bc of it. Leona is determined to save her lover from the Moon's clutches and set her free the only way she knows how, with killing her.

And thus their journey begins. Leona becomes more and more of a puppet from here and on driven by anger and betrayal and Diana feels abandoned and betrayed, with nothing left in the world but the glow of the branding mark on her forehead and the knowledge that her lover wanted her dead.

And as for their path to reunite again and achieve peace? Well Leona needs to be merciful, and Diana needs to guide and support someone through the right path.

Thanks for reading this huge ass post. Again MANY credits to that amazing writer on Ao3, if I find that fic I'll put a link here, cause its phenomenal.

Take care and see ya next time!

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riacte · 27 days

Text

Some thoughts about writing dialogue (coming from someone who basically transcribed the Blue9 MCC stream for fic purposes):

Real life dialogue is messy. People make mistakes, voices overlap, it gets unintelligible, people repeat themselves instinctively (even if they get their point across the first time)

And this is about Blue9 - four streamers (people who talk as a living) with effective communication / chemistry. It's still messy at times because that's simply how people communicate, especially in fast paced / stressful scenarios

Which makes it a bit tricky to translate to text, because if you repeat dialogue too much, it looks tacky even though it sounds perfectly normal.

Juggling between character voices in tense moments is also annoying because in audio form, you instinctively know who's speaking. But in text form, you have to add indicators so you just can't have paragraphs of dialogue (unlike speaking scenes between two characters)

^ although that could work if your characters have distinctive speaking styles (or mentioning characters by the name in the dialogue), but that also relies on the readers' knowledge of their speaking styles

^ even worse when it's a group and the voices are overlapping. The more characters you have to juggle in a scene, the more it feels like "[Character A] said" then "[Character B] said" and on it goes. It's already difficult to transcribe when it's a group of 5/6 and they're all talking.

At least there's one set of she/her pronouns in the Blue9 team. Actually this is partially why I like writing about men and women - it's easier to juggle pronouns (my skill issue lol)

I tried to keep it as close to canon as possible, but sometimes you have to edit down and add bits of exposition for clarity's sake. Like if you watch the stream, it makes sense. The repetition and messiness adds to the experience, honestly, But if you read the transcript, it doesn't work the best.

Tone is such a big thing. It comes instinctively in audio format, but it really is difficult to describe it in text sometimes, especially when it's a tense moment and you have to keep pushing forward instead of spending words to describe tone.

The good thing about writing about streamers is that if you use the right cues, readers can pick it up and picture that specific tone in their head. The bad thing is that this depends on the readers' knowledge and how good you are at describing. (The bad bad thing about this personally is that my OCs have weak character voices because I don't have canon basis.)

^ Bits of informality like stretching syllables and italics help. Like "oooh" is fundamentally different from "oh" and that is different from "ohhhh". And sometimes irl people do stretch syllables or pronounce them differently for humorous effect, but it can look unprofessional on text. (Like Scar's "a-maize-ing".) <- actually this can create distinctive character speaking styles and it's a cue to let readers immediately know who's speaking

Back to the action thing. These streamers are playing in a vc and they all hear each other, but realistically in action scenes, characters are gonna be in different places. There's volume to care about and voices getting lost in the chaos. But when writing, your focus is to push the story forward sooo realism is definitely not the priority

... Yeah. I'm giving my characters high quality communicators. And excellent hearing.

Dialogue in text is... intentional? You can see it in people snarking movies for having unrealistic dialogue. Its purpose is to convey something clearly. Dialogue in everyday life can contain a lot of blunders but that doesn't translate well in storytelling because we expect to learn something from dialogue. That's why it's there.

Transcribing videos and turning them into text based stories is an interesting exercise (and one that I keep on doing lol). It makes you more aware of the gap between irl and written dialogue and why there's a gap.

Godspeed to people who write dialogue between a group during an action scene. We all praise comms in MCC but it does give me a headache to write hahahaha.

#writing #ria.txt #tbh mcc is fun to transcribe bc the bit before each game is basically exposition time and the general strategy gets laid out #aka. outline of what's about to happen (or what should happen)#but when writing the chaos and action between a huge group... dear Lord #long post

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midnightstoriesblog · 2 years

Note

Hello there! Could I request some general headcanons of the hashiras (If it's possible all of them, if not you can choose whoever you want ^^) seeing reader (who's also a hashira) as an older sibling figure?? Please and thank you!

I hope you are having an excellent day / night <3

A/N: Hello! I'm a sucker for sibling relationships, so I love this idea! I didn't specify whetehr or not the reader is blood related to the characters, hopefully you don't mind. I hope you enjoy reading this, have a nice day/night ^^

Hashiras with a older sibling!reader

Warnings: none, just tooth rotting fluff (perhaps some minor spoilers about backstories though)

She really enjoys ranting to you, especially because she feels like you actually listen to her. The topics range from any crushes she may have, favorite food, to her your presence matters the most

Looks up to how you protect others, she's really open about it, too. By that I mean, she's always complimenting you!

If you offer to braid her hair yourself, she will be incredibly happy! She will definitely repay the favor later on, too

Invites you out for food quite often and gets really excited to try new foods with you

Internally longs for your approval, please reassure her of how strong she is

Really enjoys your company, your presence is comforting to him, even if you don't talk to him. With you, the silence is always comfortable to him

Secretly hopes to be sent on missions with you more often, but he also doesn't want you risking your life

You may be one of the few people that can make him smile, even if only faintly

Really admires your skills, by that I means he stares at you quite often. He will look away when you catch him though, he's just afraid you'll think he's weird

He would slowly open up to you over time, he truly feels like he can trust you enough to do so

Gives "Younger sibling that is constantly pestering you (affectionately)" energy- but it's just because deep inside he doesn't want to lose you too

He always asks to wear matching outfits with you, might even do your makeup so you have matching eye marks

Always talking about how flamboyant you are, no matter what you do, even more so if you have any confidence issues, but also even if you don't

Let's his guard down around you, relaxing completely when you're around and becoming even more laid-back than usual

He always has your back, even if you're his older sibling- that's what siblings do, after all!

Trust me when I say, he has an unspoken soft spot for you- and that soft spot stays unspoken

Despite how high his expectations are, you always seem to live up to them, and so his respect towards you is unwavering

Doesn't berate you as much as he does to others because of that respect, though he won't hesitate to if it means hiding his soft spot

"Protective/intimidating younger brother" energy, but he still needs reassurement from you every now and then

Teases you every now and then and he has petty fights with you, but in his mind he just thinks you're too good of an older sibling for him

His admiration for you is something he'll never express out loud, but it's there and it has been for a long time

He's a bit harsh with his words though- and he doesn't hold back in any scenario. Truthfully, his intentions aren't bad, he simply doesn't want to lose another person he cares about

Trains/spars with you a lot, because to be fair, he thinks you are very cool

Another protective younger brother, except people are openly scared of him- but he won't openly protect you, that would make him seem too "soft" (from his perspective)

You are one of the few people that can criticize him without him getting too stubborn

It's truly nice for him to have someone to rely on, though he's not fully used to it

He often goes to you for emotional support, and when you need it he's also there for you whenever you need it

Enjoys spending time with you whenever he can, but he does prefer it when he's not doing something related to his work- things like drinking tea with you and talking

Wants you to live a normal life, so he tries to step up as a sibling, even if you're older

All in all, he's very supportive of you no matter what, and he does his best to repay all the kindness you show him

Another protective younger brother, he tries to be at your side as often as he can be

He doesn't know- or well, more accurately- remember why he's so attached to you, but he is, and he'd be lying if he said you don't make him smile every now and then

Drags you to spend time with him, especially in the early mornings. Whether it's training or just eating breakfast with him, he just wants to be around you

Glares at whoever tries to take you away when he's supposed to be the one hanging out with you- in his mind, you're HIS older sibling, so why should he share you? (He just wants you attention)

In the end, he's thankful you're patient with his despite his poor memory, even if he doesn't realize it yet

She opens up to you about her true feeling, you're her shoulder to cry on- and she's there if the roles were switched, too

Teases you a lot, but never goes into personal topics. She's not heartless y'know

Finds your presence very comforting, it's a reminder that you're there for her, emotionally and physically. Additionally, it helps ground her, and keep her mind away from negative thoughts

Tries to keep you as far away from danger as she can, you may be older but she can be a bit afraid of losing you every now and then

Often spends as much time with you as she can, even if you're both very busy at times. If she can, she'll drag you around the butterfly mansion on days when there's a lot to do

He's used to being the older sibling, so it may take him a while to get used to it. He'll still act older sometimes, but that's only because he cares

Sometimes you need to remind him that even the strongest people need to be taken care of and he reminds you that it applies to you, too

Whenever has doubts about something or he just wants to talk to someone, he comes to you

Looks up to you a lot. Not only because you're strong, but also because you are even stronger than him, because you support him

He's supportive of you through anything, that's for sure. You may be older, but he's your shoulder to cry on

#demon slayer #demon slayer x reader #kimetsu no yaiba x you #kimetsu no yaiba #kny #demon slayer x you #mitsuri x reader #uzui x reader #tengen x reader #giyu x reader #obanai x reader #shinobu x reader #sanemi x reader #gyomei x reader #muichiro x reader #rengoku x reader #kyojuro x reader

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randomnameless · 8 months

Note

The phrase “we have been aware of the high levels of competency from KT's writers, especially with their work for 3H” is worrying; i'm not going to shit-talk them just for thinking that 3H has a good story, especially when someone's standards for what makes a story good or not is subjective and could be different from ours, but KT's story-telling skills are never going to improve if people keep only telling them that Three Houses' deeply-flawed story was actually a narrative masterpiece, instead of a self-contradicting mess with plot points it introduces solely as gotchas and has no intention of ever following up on in any meaningful way, characters getting assassinated left and right to try and argue that female Ashnard might actually be right and not so different from them in terms of morality and goals (while they're in the middle of fighting for their lives and watching their friends die in battle because she decided to invade their home unprovoked and solely for a landgrab), and an over-powered villain group that should have ended the story long before it even started because the writers decided to give them a stockpile of magic nukes they can launch at anywhere in the world, which was also introduced solely for shock value and without them realizing how much of the story is ruined by making it so that the villains who want to kill everyone and take over the world can just nuke anyone they want (that isn't inside Garreg Mach when they launch it) with no consequences.

I just don't like what it means for the future of FE stories if the worst story in the series keeps getting praised as one of the best, even by separate developers, is all.

Wait and see anon!

For what it's worth, while Engage's sales are apparently not as stellar as Houses in the same timeframe (like House after month 1 and Engage after month 1?), Nopes totally crashed.

Amazon isn't the only market in the world, but in some places in the world (tfw not for amazon.fr) Nopes is now sold at around 15 bucks, which is ridiculous considering older games released on consoles still being in circulation are more expensive than this thing that is barely 1 year old(even the first FEW?).

Also, Engage was supposed to have been released earlier but Covid and Houses being released later than planned meant it was delayed, but Engage was supposed to be Fodlan's antithesis, at least writing wise - you'd think IS would have tried to retrofit more Fodlan themes (maybe more uwu maybe some villains aren't BaD and earl grey because they luf u) but they didn't.

Imo, fwiw, while KT apparently loved how Fodlan was received, IS is aghast and doesn't want to touch it within a 10 meters radius, only if it means selling units in FEH and even there, they sometimes retcon Fodlan units (hello F!Billy/Sothis) or challenge them in various FB (Brave!Supreme Leader, but also in the most recent one, Sylvain harping on his Crust being BaD...) clearly showing how they don't really want to follow KT's direction regarding those units - at times, it's almost as if the CoS receives more development in Heroes than in both Fodlan games!

So I'd like to see what IS has in store for the next FE games (or the next non remake FE game), even if in my opinion, given how Heroes has to retcon/finish the writing (Mercedes reveals more about her Adrestian family in FEH than in two of her games!) for characters just to sell them in the gacha game ffs, speaks volumes on what they think of Fodlan's writing.

On top of that, FE16 was the first game where people received surveys/mails from Nintendo/IS asking them if they understood the game... - so despite Fodlan selling well (better than expected?), imo it's clear the writing isn't to praise, at least for IS, and they don't want anything to do with it (Nopes' DLC was scrapped, when shiny!Rhea's sprite was datamined, so either they made an useless sprite, either this sprite might have been used in a future DLC?)

They can still butcher a future remake (plz no jugdral) by adding pointless supports between units and trying to uwu more than needed the red emperor - or add an OC waifu du jour who will sell merchs and try to uwu her if she is on the side of the red emperor - but I feel like we will see where they will go with a brand new game (since Heroes's writing is... as consistent as a fog and basically circles around "women sad'n'lonely*, men evyl", female playable OC simps after the avatar and is useless in the resolution of the plot because Alfonse will finally find a mc guffin way to defeat the villain of the year).

*i truly hope Vero isn't any indication to what the writing of the future games will be, like heavy retcons from her first apparition to "i was brainwashed and akshually everyone supports me from my home even if i send them to death against askr because the voice in my head told me to do it" because that'd suck, but vero is a young woman, thus she could be monetised for alts, figurines and even DLC content in a main game!

#anon #replies #fwiw even the main redshit subs seems to be tired of the 'uwu stellar writing uwu'#i mean some people on the main sub #and call out the crap writting and incoherent plot points #I'm not joking about the CoS or at least Nabateans lol #they receive more love in FEH than in both games combined #especially Rhea which makes me happy #and billy too!#also lol@the shitstorm when Cyril was released #bcs some people didn't get the memo that Gonerils had him work without being fed in the main games #but here FEH puts it in your face through his own lines and Sharena's description #sure it's not too much because it's FEH and Cyril is a grail unit thus didn't get any FB #but it's better than the nothing he got in Nopes #and the bonkers supports and endings he can have in Houses that completely elude the topic #even Hubert in his support comments on how Adrestian Nobles treated Petra when she was brought to Adrestia #but in Cyril's support it's never mentionned he's just insulted and that's it #no one mentions how that certain house has almyran servants they forgot to feed #top tier writing uwu or is it just not throwing dirt on a waifu who can sell alts?#character rant #FE16

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aebi12 · 9 months

Text

"Resentment" - Chapter 4

Summary

He is the cause of her sufferings. He took her dragon, her betrothed, and her father. Now, he will also take away her future by having to marry him.

With so much history and bad blood between Rhaena and Aemond, their forced union has everything to fail, except that the proximity will make them discover that perhaps they have more in common than it seems.

AU - the Greens win the war.

Masterlist with previous chapters

____________________________________________________

Hi again~

I am so so sorry for how long took me to update. I have no intentions to abbandon this story, but life was very busy and complicated this past weeks. Hopefully there're still some of you interested in this ff :)

As usual, I'm sorry if there are mistakes! I couldn't properly review all the translation

__________________________________________________________

Fuck.

What on earth had happened to her?

Why had she had to confront the kinslayer in that way?

Why hadn't she been able to contain her temper?

Rhaena keeps replaying their brief conversation as she walks in hasty strides still holding Marianne by her arm, dragging her out of the gardens and turning her head from time to time to make sure he isn't following them.

“Should I call the maester?”

The question from her lady-in-waiting takes her away from her thoughts. Rhaena frowns at her, “The maester? No, why?"

“Because you look like you are about to faint?” she responds, a clear expression of concern in her honey-colored eyes.

Rhaena stops walking and opens her mouth to respond, but she closes it immediately, preferring only to shake her head.

“I am fine, I was just…”

"Terrified?" Marianne proposes, “I would be too. Prince Aemond is intimidating. I swear to the Gods that I would definitely faint if I had his attention. I don't think I have even exchanged a word with him in these almost three years since I arrived at the Fortress, that of course until a moment ago, when I had to break all that tension between you two"

Rhaena decides to ignore that last part, “Have you never talked to him?”

“No, not really. I doubt he even knows my name,” she responds without giving it too much importance and adds, before Rhaena's amazed look, “He doesn't socialize with anyone. Well, just with his family and the council members. That’s good for me though, the prince terrifies me"

Rhaena can't deny that last bit.

“Is Lady Redwyne really expecting us? I don't remember her inviting us to tea this afternoon."

“No, no, I just said it to end the conversation with my betrothed.”

Marianne giggles and is about to respond when her expression abruptly changes, her cheeks turning a deep pink. Rhaena follows the direction of her gaze to the tall figure of her cousin Daeron, who walks down the corridor alongside the High Septon, an expression of polite interest on his face that gives way to a smile as he passes besides the girls, greeting them with a nod, but without stopping. Rhaena watches as Marianne follows the prince with her eyes until he disappears as he turns right into another hallway.

Marianne blushes even more when she looks back at Rhaena, who is watching her with raised eyebrows and trying to contain a smile. "What were you saying?"

Rhaena shakes her head, “Nothing, nothing at all.”

"I am sorry. I was…"

Her lady is clearly feeling embarrassed, so Rhaena interrupts her and takes her arm again, “Let’s go, my belongings finally arrived from the Vale and I would like your assistance to put everything in order”

“Yes, yes, of course,” Marianne agrees vehemently, clearly relieved by the change of topic.

Rhaena leads the way, pleased to finally be able to walk through the Keep without getting lost. When they enter their rooms, they notice two large trunks placed near the bed.

"This is all?"

“Yes, I suppose so,” Rhaena answers as she opens one of the trunks and smiles as she looks at her books, paintings, and other decorative objects that adorned her old room.

“These are pretty,” Marianne pulls one of her dresses from the other trunk, the mauve one she had worn the night she found out about her impending betrothal, “This color must look wonderful on you.”

Rhaena smiles wistfully as she takes it from Marianne's hands, “It is my favorite color.”

“It is a shame the dowager queen chose only the Targaryen black and red for you,” Marianne sighs, “Perhaps you could tell her you need new ones. These are too simple for life at Court,” she comments as she pulls another of her old dresses from the trunk.

“Perhaps… but it is not really a priority.”

Marianne snorts in disbelief, “You will be the prince's wife! Wife of the Hand of the King, surely Queen Alicent would not deny you something as trivial as new dresses. Plus, wouldn't it be wonderful to renovate your style? Personally, I love when I have the opportunity to choose new gowns.”

“I assume that happens often,” Rhaena replies as she thinks about the variety of outfits she's seen her wear.

“My father doesn't usually limit me in that way,” she nods with a giggle.

Marianne continues taking out the dresses, and they both place them in the empty space of the closet. There aren't too many of them, so the task doesn't take them much time.

“Do you usually read a lot?”

“Yes, whenever I have time,” Rhaena places the books on the shelf, feeling a warm sensation in her chest as she watches them once again occupying a space in her room. “My mother used to read frequently to me.”

Her voice, as always when she talks about her mother, sounds full of sadness. Marianne notices this because she takes her hand and squeezes it gently. Rhaena turns to her and smiles in gratitude.

"And what is this?" asks her lady releasing her hand and taking a silver chest.

“That is…” Rhaena rushes to take the chest from her hands.

"Private?" Marianne asks, clearly curious at her lady’s obvious blush.

Rhaena bites the inside of her lip, wondering how to respond. The girl looks down at her chest and sighs, opening the lid and showing her the contents.

"Flowers?" Marianne's tone of voice is almost disappointed.

“Gifts from a very dear friend”

“Oh,” Marianne nods and her eyes widen, “Oh”

“Just a friend,” she repeats, emphasizing the last word.

“Yeah, right,” Marianne smiles, “These are pretty.”

“They are not common in the Vale, so Corwyn used to search for them when he went hunting and gave them to me when he returned to the castle,” she comments almost without thinking about it, once again invaded by nostalgia.

“Corwyn?”

“Corbray. Sir Corwyn Corbray”

“I know that name,” Marianne frowns, “Is he a relative of Lord Leowyn Corbray?”

“His younger brother,” Rhaena nods.

“I met Lord Leowyn during his stay here. He was quite handsome and polite,” Marianne smiles with that mischief so common to her, “Does his brother look like him? Because I would understand the appeal if that were the case”

“He was just a friend,” Rhaena responds, trying to sound sharp, “Don't get ideas that are irrelevant.”

Marianne shrugs, “I was just stating the obvious. Were you…"

The girl falls silent and Rhaena sighs again, “You can speak freely.”

“Was he courting you? Were you expecting a betrothal? I think it would have been an acceptable option. The Corbray are an ancient and honorable house.”

“I know,” is all she answers, “But I have a duty to the realm and the crown has decided that I fulfill it alongside Prince Aemond.”

Mentioning his name makes her stomach twist once again as she remembers their conversation earlier.

“It's a shame, in any case,” Marianne replies, looking at the flowers, “Sir Corwyn seems to have been very attentive to you, while the prince usually acts as if you didn’t exist.”

Rhaena feels the discomfort in her stomach increase at the words of her lady, but she prefers to shake her head and change the subject.

“Tell me about your life in the Crag”

As Rhaena expects, Marianne launches into a lively story about her life and anecdotes from her childhood that manage to distract her while she arranges her ornaments and other belongings in her room.

“And the smell!” says Marianne, “So different than here. The city was clean and pretty, and the beach… I miss the beach so much”

“We could go to the beach one of these days,” Rhaena proposes, “It would be nice for Morning to fly freely.”

“That sounds lovely!”

“We could invite Daeron to come with us,” she proposes.

Marianne blushes intensely. “The prince? Yes, I suppose… I suppose he would be a suitable company”

“I think the same,” Rhaena agrees.

Her lady sighs and looks down for a few seconds, “You noticed, right? Back then, when we saw him”

“It was hard not to,” she responds with an apologetic smile.

“I think the prince is the only one who hasn't noticed it yet. But it is fine. We are finished here, right? We should go. Perhaps Lady Stokeworth still has those delicious cakes she always offers us."

Rhaena drops the topic upon hearing the sadness in her voice, so she simply accepts her suggestion and they leave her room.

***

Aemond drums his fingers on the table, eager to get the Small Council meeting over with.

“The royal fleet should also be repaired, my prince, their current state is pitiful.”

“Evaluate the costs, Lord Tyland, and let me know if it would not be more appropriate to simply replace them.”

“Of course, Prince Aemond,” the man replies.

“Well, if that's all…” he says, pushing out the chair and standing up.

“There is something else, my prince,” says Criston.

"What is it?" he asks, sitting back down and holding back a snort of annoyance.

“House Tully have not yet paid this year tribute to the Crown”

"Why not?" the prince frowns

“They say that the harvests have not been as expected after the last winter, my prince. And also…"

“Speak, Lord Hayford,” orders Aemond

“They say that the lands have not yet fully recovered after being devastated by the dragon fire,” the master of laws responds in a fearful voice.

Aemond grunts in annoyance and his hands clench into fists, “Are they still insisting on this matter? It is the most ridiculous excuse. I will not tolerate their insolence and disobedience. They are going to have to pay or I will go personally with…”

The prince cuts himself off before mentioning the name of his dragoness, a pang of sadness running through him.

“Perhaps we should go for a diplomatic route,” Lord Tyland proposes, “Your brother could fly to Riverrun. The arrival of the prince would remind them of their duty without being a… threatening sight”

Aemond directs his hard gaze toward Lannister, but lets his comment pass.

“I will consult this matter with the king,” he simply replies, a headache beginning to form in his left temple and near his scar.

Without further ado he leaves the room determined to go to his private housings in the Tower of the Hand and apply the ointment that usually relieves his pain.

The corridors of the Red Keep open before him, who ignores the greetings of the members of the court and simply advances in the direction of his destination.

It is when he is crossing near the double doors that lead to one of the smaller halls of the palace that laughter and the unmistakable sound of a roaring dragon make him stop.

What in the seven hells is she doing now? He thinks to himself as his curiosity takes over and he approaches the doors.

Inside the hall, Rhaena Targaryen is surrounded by a small group of ladies and lords who seem to be watching a show. Laughter rings out again as her cousin's pet dragon/pet lets out a ridiculous flame to char what appears to be a piece of meat.

The ladies do not hesitate to applaud the creature and Rhaena's smile widens as she caresses the dragon, whispering things that he cannot hear. Aemond narrows his good eye at the scene and lets out a disbelieving snort.

“She is quite the social butterfly.”

The sudden appearance of his mother at his side almost surprised him.

“It is not proper behavior for a Targaryen,” he replies, “To parade her dragon as if it were a spectacle for the masses. Ridiculous"

Alicent's expression twitches at his comment. “I hope you keep those opinions to yourself when you talk to her”

"Hmm"

“I found out that you talked a couple of days ago in the garden.”

Aemond raises his eyebrows at his mother, “I suppose I shouldn't be surprised that you are following me. Or her”

Alicent has the delicacy to blush, “I simply wanted to know if you had taken my suggestion to court her seriously.”

“I assured you I would. Do you trust me so little?”

Aemond tries to keep his voice unaffected, but his mother's lack of response causes bitterness to once again flood inside him.

“I don't think you have much experience courting noble ladies,” Alicent replies.

He rolls his eyes at the clear allusion to his past slip and look away, already tired of the topic. Is it that everyone is willing to remind him of his mistakes this day?

“I assure you that I am perfectly capable of dealing properly with my betrothed”

Alicent sighs and moves a little closer to her son, placing her hand on her arm conciliatorily, “I wanted to ask you something.”

"What is it?"

“I want you to take my place as representative of the Crown during the Mother Festival.”

"Why?" he asks, amazed by the request. His mother is a devotee of the Faith of the Seven, and she has never missed the celebrations aimed at the gods, “You always look forward to the date.”

“I am more needed here this year,” she responds simply, although her hands move involuntarily and begin to injure the skin around her nails, “Ellyn continues to have complications with her health and Aegon requires care too.”

“The maesters can take care of both of them for a few days.”

“I know, but I'd rather do it myself.”

Aemond tilts his body towards his mother and dares to place his hand over hers, covering it completely and preventing her from continuing to hurt herself. Alicent raises her brown eyes to him and the prince can see the tiredness in them, as well as how nervous she seems, “Tell me why you really want me to go in your place.”

The dowager queen sighs and closes her eyes for a few seconds, “I think it is more appropriate for you and Rhaena to attend and receive the Mother's blessing.”

“Do you want me to go with her?” He can't help but sound half irritated and half mocking and grimace in Rhaena's direction.

“Please, Aemond, show some respect. This is important"

"How so?"

“Haven't you heard what the people say about us? What even members of the Court think”

“I do not waste my time considering unimportant opinions,” he replies dryly.

“Well you should!” Alicent replies, “It is rumored that we are cursed. That the Gods have punished this family with the death of the heirs for having usurped Rhaenyra’s throne, and having killed the boy Aegon.”

“My brother is no Usurper and you know very well that we had nothing to do with the death of Rhaenyra's son,” he replies sourly.

“But that is what everyone believes”

“Nonsense,” Aemond dismisses her comment with a wave of his hand, “Frankly, mother, I am amazed you pay attention to idiotic superstitions. I know our situation is not ideal, but you should not fear. I will do my duty and provide the realm with an heir as soon as possible."

His good eye cannot help but stray for a moment towards Rhaena, who, oblivious to the conversation between the prince and his mother, continues laughing alongside the nobles.

“I hope so,” the dowager queen places her hand on her son's cheek, and for a moment Aemond is so surprised by the sudden caress that he is left breathless, “Can I count on you then?”

“Of course,” he nods immediately, warmth flooding inside him as he hears his mother's voice so full of softness and hope, “I'll personally make sure everything turns out perfect.”

Alicent nods as well and with one last tiny smile, walks away down the hallway.

Aemond, for his part, looks back at his betrothed, who is now conversing animatedly with two young noble ladies he does not know. One of them offers Rhaena a bright smile before walking away towards the doors and where Aemond is.

When she passes by him, the prince notices how her smile disappears and how her eyes wander to the scar that adorns her face and the leather patch that covers it. The young woman, noticeably tense, bows and whispers a polite greeting. Aemond, annoyed, simply glares at her before turning and heading towards his room.

~~~

Strawberry tartlets are her favorite.

Rhaena takes one more from the tray that a servant offers her and chews it with relish while Marianne, next to her, continues talking about the lack of balls in the palace.

“I still can't believe there were masquerades in this place,” Rhaena says when she finishes the sweet.

“They are Queen Ellyn's favorites!” her lady answers

Rhaena nods. During the weeks of her stay in the capital she had come to form an idea of the young queen's character based on everything she had heard about her, about her love of dancing and puppeteer performances. As someone who enjoyed social entertainment tremendously, Rhaena hoped to meet her soon.

“Oh yes, the queen made a big deal of her famous masquerades,” it is Lady Blackwood who intervenes, “Not everyone at court got an invitation, only those important enough or those she found interesting enough to be around her.”

“Without a doubt, you, Lady Blackwood, belonged to the first group, being such an illustrious lady and such a generous hostess,” Rhaena responds, taking another strawberry tartlet and offering the older woman an adorable smile.

“You flatter me, girl!” she replies with evident satisfaction, “I won't deny that the queen and I have a good relationship, yes.”

Marianne holds back a giggle by covering her mouth with her hand and Rhaena avoids looking at her so as not to laugh too.

This afternoon, like the previous ones, she has also been invited to have tea in one of the castle's private rooms. Rhaena gladly participated in these meetings because they helped her discover interesting details about life at Court and, above all, because she loved how kind everyone was to her. The ladies had not hesitated to make her participate in the social routine of the Fortress and the lords always greeted her with a smile, eager to please her.

And although she knew that perhaps many of them came with the intention of ingratiating themselves with the prince's future wife, Rhaena was grateful for keeping her mind occupied and distracted from the anxiety that overwhelmed her when she was alone in her room.

Just one more moon and you will be the kinslayer's wife.

“What about you Marianne? Did you used to attend the masquerades?” she asks, pushing her betrothed out of her mind.

“Every once in a while, yes,” she nods.

“It's a shame we haven't had one in so many moons. The palace could do with being filled with music and laughter again,” says Lady Blackwood

“Although we will have a chance to celebrate when Rhaena gets married!” exclaims Marianne, excited

Rhaena forces a smile and takes another tartlet to avoid answering.

“Do you think they invite all the nobles in the kingdom, Lady Blackwood?” Marianne inquires.

“It would be the right thing to do,” the woman agrees, “Although with so little time, I don't think everyone will have the chance to get to the capital.”

“Anyway, I'm so excited for the tournament. I have never…"

Rhaena tunes out the conversation for a few minutes and snaps back to attention when Lady Redwyne's high-pitched voice interrupts them.

“What, may I know, are you talking so animatedly about?”

The old lady, helped by a maid, sits next to Rhaena, who greets her cordially and tries to keep her face impassive when her pug begins to lick her fingers.

“About the impending wedding of Lady Rhaena and the prince,” Lady Blackwood replies.

"It's not exciting? A banquet, a tournament, new clothes…”

“Well, child, you seem more cheerful than the bride herself,” Lady Redwyne cuts Marianne off and rests her gaze on Rhaena, her small gray eyes studying the reaction of the young girl, who cannot help but pale a little under her scrutiny, “Aren’t you happy to marry the prince?”

“Of course, I am,” Rhaena assures, “I am just feeling a little… nervous about the married life that awaits me soon,” she hastens to say.

Lady Redwyne still stares at her for a few seconds before snorting in disbelief, “I suppose as the daughter of a Targaryen prince it is fitting that you marry one, although a sweet girl like you would deserve someone better than the one-eyed prince.”

There is a sudden silence between them, and Rhaena looks in disbelief at the old woman, who seems to enjoy the reaction she provokes in the others.

“Oh, stop it, I know you share the same opinion as me,” Lady Redwyne continues, “It is no secret that Prince Aemond is…”

"Arrogant? Hostile? Violent?" Lady Blackwood proposes

“That's right,” the other old woman agrees.

“Surely the prince can’t be that bad,” Marianne tries to say.

“Oh, fool girl, the entire kingdom knows the prince's nature,” Lady Blackwood dismisses Marianne's comment, “His violent impulses ruined the Riverlands. He left devastation and death wherever he went. He wiped out the entire Strong line in a single day."

Rhaena doesn't miss the tone of pain and anger that hardens the woman's voice.

“Well, we could say that he did keep one Strong as his spoils of war,” Lady Redwyne retorts with an unamusing laugh.

“What a shameful matter.”

“What do you mean?” Rhaena can't help but ask without understanding the women's comment.

Lady Redwyne gives her a confused look, “Are you not aware of that?” when Rhaena shakes her head, the woman continues, “Oh gods, how could you not? It was a matter widely discussed by everyone."

“Prince Aemond,” says Lady Redwyne, “took a Strong bastard as a lover.”

Marianne lets out a gasp of disbelief and, if it weren't for the fact that the news takes Rhaena by surprise, even she would have laughed at the comicality of her lady's expression.

“A certain Alys Rivers,” Lady Redwyne holds her dog against her chest, a mischievous smile on her face, “They called her the Witch of Harrenhal.”

“And was she really a witch?” It is Marianne who asks

“Probably not,” Lady Blackwood replies, “Although she had gained some fame in those lands because they said she saw visions in the fire. She was beautiful, though. She tried to seduce Prince Daemon when he took Harrenhal, but she didn't stand a chance with him. Prince Aemond, on the other hand, was captivated by her charms and experience"

Lady Redwyne snorts indignantly, “What a shame that was for poor Queen Alicent! Her most beloved son involved with a bastard and putting aside all his responsibilities to simply enjoy of his love affair."

“Responsibilities?” Rhaena asks.

“He left her alone,” the old woman responds again, still indignant, “He lived peacefully in Harrenhal while the poor queen had to deal with Princess Rhaenyra and Prince Daemon, who came to take the capital. The queen believed that her son would return with his dragon to rescue her, but obviously that was not the case."

“He did come back for this Alys, however,” Lady Blackwood asserts, “When the Frey’s took Harrenhal, he personally went and rescued the bastard. She said she was carrying the prince child”

“Oh gods,” Marianne covers her mouth with her hands and exchanges a shocked look with Rhaena, “And was she?”

"No, I don’t think so. Those were just inventions of a gold-digger”

"What happened next?" Rhaena wants to know

“Well… Prince Aemond went to fight with your father,” Lady Redwyne nods at Rhaena, “And we know how that turned out. What is not very clear is what happened between the prince and his lover. They returned to Harrenhal, but soon afterward he returned to the capital. Some say he executed her, others say he simply abandoned her."

“But he loved her…” she says almost in a whisper, although Lady Redwyne manages to hear her and lets out a laugh.

“He was enthralled by her, yes. Maybe even bewitched, but in the end, he came to his senses and came back.”

Rhaena simply nods, trying to process all the information she just received.

“It's not a competition, my dear, you are a thousand times better than that commoner witch,” Lady Blackwood assures her, smiling appreciatively.

“Don't think about it, it's simply the nature of men and not even princes escape it,” Lady Redwyne rolls her eyes.

Rhaena thanks them and takes another tartlet. Marianne, who seems to notice how overwhelmed her lady is feeling, is quick to change the subject.

When both young women finally manage to leave the small room, Marianne intertwines her hands with Rhaena's.

“I think I'm in shock,” her lady assures in a low voice.

“They had a lot to tell, didn't they?” Rhaena tries to joke, although her voice betrays her nervousness.

“Do you… do you want to talk to me about it?” Marianne asks.

“I don't think there's anything really to say, I don't—” Rhaena is cut off when a guard stops before her.

“A message for you, Lady Rhaena.”

The knight hands her a sealed scroll, nods and immediately walks away from them.

Rhaena looks at the seal of House Targaryen and frowns, quickly breaking it and reading the contents.

"What does it say?" Marianne wants to know, curious

But it takes Rhaena a few seconds to respond because her eyes are still rereading the message, as if wanting to make sure that she has really read and understood the written message correctly.

“It's a…” she clears her suddenly dry throat, “It's an invitation from Prince Aemond.”

"What?!" her lady gasps

“He wants to have dinner with me tomorrow night in his private chambers.”

_______________________________________________________

Please let me know what you think! And if you would like to maybe be tag in the next chapters :)

@ammo23 @qyburnsghost @niocel

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#aemond targaryen #aemond one eye #ao3fic #prince aemond #aemond kinslayer #resentment #rhaena of pentos #rhaena targaryen #eventual smut #multichapter #aemond fic #rivals to lovers

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wangsejabin · 6 months

Text

Chapter 125

Datong, Hu Bingcheng?

That was Consort Hu's maiden clan then.

But Pan'er didn't mention that, she just said, "Even if you're worried about the border affairs, you should still have the evening meal. Whether you take the evening meal or not has nothing to do with whether Datong is in chaos or not, and even if you don't take the evening meal, it won't solve anything."

"A bunch of crooked reasoning!" Zong Cong tapped her on the forehead. She also ignored him and turned around to go out and order Xiang Pu and the girls to pass some dinner over.

Fulu busily came over and said, "Your Highness, the evening meal has long been prepared by the slave, that is, His Majesty does not have the heart to use it, no need for Xiang Pu to pass it on, the slave will let someone serve it up here."

Not long after, the evening meal was served. Probably thought it was late, in order to avoid eating too well at night, so the meal was vegetarian and noodle-based.

The noodle colour was slightly yellow, the dish seems to use eggs too, this Fulu in ordering Zong Cong's food, could be said to have made great effort. Probably also knew that the border was in turmoil, His Majesty probably would not have much heart to eat, and would randomly eat a few bites, so more thought was put in and additional nutrients were hidden in the noodles.

As expected, Zong Cong finally stared at the noodles and ate, although Pan'er also took the initiative to give him a few chopsticks of vegetables, he was patient, and also did not just eat a few mouthfuls. A bowl of noodles was consumed, the person is much more comfortable, Zong Cong drank a cup of tea, and only then had the mood to talk to Pan'er.

"Went to the Empress's Palace today?"

Was this not asking a question clearly knowing the answer.

"The Empress called the Bai Jie away, I'm a small minded person, for fear that she would make things difficult for Bai Jie, naturally, I had to go over to get the person back."

"Whitewashing again." Zong Cong chuckled and said.

"How did I whitewash things, the truth is really so," she batted her eyelashes and said mischievously, "the Empress said that the Ministry of the Interior honoured me with two top quality sable skins, which were not within my regulations, but were knowingly received by Bai Jie, so she looked for Bai Jie to interrogate her. Bai Jie was also a stupid person, didn't know how to evade, received a number of slaps, I couldn't stand it so I looked for a reason to teach Fu Chun a lesson."

She covered her face and said, "In fact, I also know that I was wrong, I shouldn't have offended the empress, but in the end, I am also a favoured consort, everyone in the palace knows that the empress doesn't give me any face at all, I also want face ah, if this matter is over today, in the future, they are all going to bully me and step on my head, so since she beat up my maid, I beat up her maid."

Zong Cong was amused by this crooning look of hers and patted her hand, "Still saying you're not whitewashing."

"It really isn't a whitewash. By the way, I also said a few words to the Empress, I said that Su has been surnamed for more than twenty years, and I have no intention to change my surname, so that she should not worry, don't look for trouble with me, I'm timid ......"

"You ah, really an abrasive spirit, it was not necessary for me to worry that you had suffered a loss in the Empress' Palace."

Pan'er glared at him "You worry that I suffered losses in the Empress's Palace, and yet I didn't see you come to my rescue, causing me to think of methods to get out of it for half a day."

"You even beat up the Empress's senior palace maid, and you're still worried about not being able to walk out?" He reached out to wring her cheek.

She covered her face and just wouldn't give him a wring. The two of them made a mess, their bad mood was better, and things were made clear, so they went up to the couch to rest, after all, Zong Cong was also tired today, and didn't have much of a break all day.

Things seemed to end just like that without a trace.

Naturally, that is impossible, even if the surface seems calm, in fact, the palace with so many pairs of eyes, even if one did not know the inside story, it was obvious that this time the noble consort and the empress was really at a stalemate.

Dowager Empress Fu also did not know, or pretended not to know, in any case, the next day she did not mention it at the morning greetings.

On the contrary, at the Empress's side, the day after the incident, she also insisted on going to the Ning Shou Palace to ask for peace, and then fell ill. The doctor was summoned, the doctor prescribed medication, and then the whole palace knew that the Empress was sick.

The next few days the empress waived the concubines' greetings, and to reported herself sick to Ning Shou Palace, closed the doors in Kunning Palace to recuperate.

In the Kunning Palace, Empress Chen lay on the phoenix bed with a pale face.

Duo and Wan Shu had just left.

Things had become such a mess that even the aloof Zong Yue could know about it, and they naturally knew about it as well.

But unlike Zong Yue's mood, the Empress had just plainly suffered a loss at the hands of Noble Consort Su.

On the surface saying that Jingren Palace received the superior sable skin not conforming to the noble consort's regulations, the empress attacked the noble consort's uninformed lackeys, and for this reason, the Internal Affairs Bureau also specially brought a eunuch out to receive punishment.

Who knew that on the next day His Majesty rewarded the Jingren Palace, not only sable, but black fox fur and silver fox fur as well. Even two pieces of the rare sea dragon skin from that year's tributes were sent.

One of them was presented to Empress Dowager Fu, and the other was Zong Cong's own.

This time the face was beaten a little too hard, this was also the reason why Empress Chen went right back and fell ill.

Fu Chun's eyes were sunken in, all from staying up and crying for the past two days. She advised Empress Chen, "Your Majesty, even if you don't think about yourself, you should think about the Grand Prince and Second Princess."

Empress Chen in turn was calm, apart from her face being paler, she was no different from usual, reaching out to pat her, "I'm fine, I just want to be quiet for a few days." "But-" Fu Chun hesitated, tucking the slipping quilt upwards, "In a few days it will be the fifteenth day of the eighth month, if you stay sick, his majesty might... ..."

Fu Chun didn't finish the rest of his words, but Empress Chen could guess her meaning. Perhaps the authority to manage palace affairs would be handed over to Noble Consort Su, after all, the 15th of August was the Mid-Autumn Festival, and at this time of the year the palace had to hold palace banquets, so there had to be someone in charge of the affairs.

Once the palace authority was handed over, with Su Guifei's current momentum, it would be difficult to get it back. The matter of management rights may seem to be petty, especially because of the existence of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, they greatly reduced the weight of the palace authority. But for the concubines, management authority was their lifeblood. It was the ultimate signifier of status.

That person had favour, she couldn't do anything about her, but there were others. Empress Chen had not forgotten that there was a Hu Shufei in the background, that person had been with her since she entered the Eastern Palace and had opposed her from day one, taking advantage of people's illnesses to make headway was not uncommon in the palace, she did not want to fall into the weeds and allow the chicken to pretend at being a phoenix.

So Empress Chen was instantly spirited. "You are right. In fact, this palace has also figured out in the past two days, since that Su didn't bother to recognise the Chen family, how the Chen family wants and intends to act is secondary, the Chen family and this palace are stuck in the same boat, and it's still not clear who the loser will be."

Empress Chen sat up quickly, but collapsed back again because of dizziness, Fu Chun quickly held her up and said, "Your Highness, even if you want to be tough, you have to be mindful of the phoenix body, it is better to eat something first. As long as you have the heart, you won't lose, in the end, you are the Empress of the Central Palace."

After that, Fu Chun went down to prepare food for Empress Chen without any further discussion.

Pan'er had been a little afraid that Empress Dowager Fu would scold her, who would have thought that she actually did not. Turning her head to see Kunning palace closing its doors to recuparate, she was a little embarrassed.

Why did it feel like they had been bullied?

Of course, this was a fleeting thought, in fact, the days had to pass and life went on. And because His Majesty rewarded the Jingren Palace, the Jingren Palace had plenty of face, the servants below all full of energy, and that day they were called by Xiang Pu to get together a few palace maids and eunuchs, speaking of that day's events in a vivid manner.

Although they did not go into the hall itself, and did not witness the whole scene, before the lady barged into the Kunning Palace they saw the situation.

They were not afraid of the Kunning Palace, and who had not witnessed Her Highness the noble consorts' benevolence, when Kunning Palace was making things difficult for miss Bai Jie, Her Highness personally brought people to take her back! Following such a master, one could rest assured.

Pan'er had not expected that because of this, Jingren Palace going through ups and downs united the people in it, inspiring a sense of belonging in the palace maids and eunuchs. They all suddenly changed their attitude and became proud to serve in Jingren Palace. But perhaps that could have been expected.

"Okay, okay, a little talk in the palace amongst our own people is fine, when you go out remember to keep your mouth shut for us, lest gossip attracts trouble for our ladyship." Feng Hai said with a smile, a few small palace maid and small eunuchs smilingly dispersed, he lifted his robe to walk into the hall.

Pan'er was sitting on the kang drinking tea, when she heard these words, she put down her tea, and let Xiang Pu move a seat for Feng Hai before saying, " That matter was expected, the Empress's resilience can't be compared to ordinary people." She had long had experience in her previous life.

Previously, Zong Cong had also proposed for Pan'er to take over the mess that was the Mid-Autumn Festival, but she had rejected it. She only shrugged it off, saying that the Empress might be fine, and Zong Cong knew that in her heart that she didn't want to risk her head again, so he didn't say much. However, they were both aware, even if Empress Chen's Feng phoenix body was unwell, she would force herself to manage it no matter the consequences.

Feng Hai also mentioned this to Pan'er before,to let her make preparations, Pan'er only told him to wait and see, and as expected, she was proven right.

"Since the Empress has recovered, how things should be done in the future is the same as before, don't grow arrogant because of that day, if someone causes trouble I will definitely not forgive him." Pan'er said.

"Your Highness need not worry, slave will definitely take note of your words."

Empress Chen's speed of convalescence was out of everyone's expectation. However, thinking about the Mid-Autumn Festival that was about to come, one could understand why she was able to get well so quickly.

When Empress Chen brought the concubines to greet Dowager Empress Fu after she recovered from her illness, Dowager Empress Fu looked at her, her attitude had not changed much, and said, "As long as the Empress is well, don't work too hard, and if you need to let the following people do something, let them do it, with so much going on in the palace, if you have to do everything yourself, it's no wonder that you will exhaust your body."

"Thanking empress mother for her concern."

This mother-in-law and daughter-in-law were saying polite words one one side, on the other side, concubine Li almost spit out the sip of tea she'd just taken.

She hurriedly took a handkerchief and pressed the corners of her mouth, and glanced at the Empress Dowager and the Empress, why did she feel that the Empress Dowager's words had an underlying meaning?

Thinking wildly, she looked again at Noble Consort Su who was sitting in front. Pan'er naturally didn't see Concubine Li's eyes, below her sat Hu Shufei, seeing Hu Shufei's haggard look, Concubine Li took the opportunity to put her tea cup down on the table in the gap between them and whispered, "Shufei shouldn't be worried, your father will definitely be fine." Hu Shufei glanced at her and pulled the corner of her mouth, sort of acknowledging it with a smile.

In fact, if one thinks about it, with Hu Shufei's character of being concerned about the chaos in the world, this time when Empress Chen lost so much face, she was not jumping up and down to watch the fun, which was really unusual.

Empress Dowager Fu naturally also noticed this point, and so when she finished talking to the Empress, she then turned to Hu Shufei and said: "Shufei must be very worried about General Hu, you can rest assured that the Emperor has sent the imperial envoys to the border, this time, accompanied by two imperial physicians, General Hu will certainly turn out to be in a safe condition."

"Thanking Empress Dowager, thanking His Majesty for your great kindness."

There was a grateful smile on her face and her mouth was saying the same thing, but Hu Shufei's heart was very bitter.Her father was injured while fighting against the Jin people, when the Jin people attacked Datong, her father chased them out of the city in a hurry, and unfortunately he was ambushed by the enemy, so he fell off his horse and was injured. Although fortunately his life was saved, but the person had not yet woken up.

Whether he gained glory or not was secondary, the important thing was the person, and even if he woke up, for a while certainly would not be able to lead the troops. Datong is one of the nine important towns by the border, the Jin people this year chose Datong as a breakthrough, certainly not without an underlying plan.

The court could not wait for her father to recover, and would certainly send another general to take command. This time his majesty sent an envoy in the name of praising her father, but in reality the intention was changing the generals, but he acted concerned about her father's face before sending the degree to the outside world.

Obviously these words are not appropriate to say.

On such occasions, the palace had always been a place where the powerful stepped on the weak, seeing others lose power, people would rush to kick them while they were down, fortunately, the Empress was only concerned about fighting with Su Guifei, and did not have any mind to concern herself with her, or else who knew how much humiliation she would have suffered.

They did not press Hu Shufei too much, aside from asking about the well-being of her family out of politeness, for the rest of the palace, in the end, her tragedy was just a small matter.

Soon the Mid-Autumn Festival was coming, the palace once again returned became lively.

#mtl #yingchong

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