#aedions mom | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

mariaofdoranelle · 3 months

Text

Look at Us Now - Bonus chapter 23.5: Maisie’s pov

Fic masterlist

Getting Maisie’s voice right was challenging (and the whole reason I didn’t consider writing her pov before loll), and I don’t think I nailed it, but I kinda like how this chapter turned out heheh enjoy!

Rowan mentioned dropping Maisie at Aedion’s on ch. 23, and this is what happened

*Winks at this Nonnie*

Warnings: none?

Words: 2,6k

“F—fork,” Uncle Aedion said as soon as he opened his front door, rubbing his eyes. “Rowan, what the fork are you doing here at six-thirty?”

Maisie sighed, holding Fleetfoot. She knew what he was going to say, that word she couldn’t repeat either. But if grown-ups hated the word ‘fuck’ so much, why were they always saying it?

“I brought Maisie for a fun morning with you.” Rowan patted his daughter in the head, a reminder of the terrible braid he made. It was the fastest braid he’s ever done, with no ribbons and some strands thicker than others. Her mom would never let her go out with hair like this. “You can go to the pool…” He trailed when Aedion wouldn’t stop glaring. “The playground?” Rowan’s face started turning into a grimace. “Watch TV? Roblox?“

Maisie’s heartbeat fastened. Her dad was strict about screens, so something must’ve happened. And it was weird that her mom didn’t sleep with them last night. The only change was Fleetfoot, but Aelin liked Fleetfoot—she even promised to play with them later.

But she didn’t.

The little girl turned off from the conversation her dad and uncle were having, needing to think. Most of the time, she was the cause of her parents’ fights, since they were always shouting her name at each other, but it all got better when they started going to the playground together. She didn’t hear them shouting anyone’s name, but maybe her dad would feel better if Maisie took him to the playground with her mom.

The little girl clutched Fleetfoot to her chest, her heart feeling all tight and squeeze-y inside.

Rowan and Aedion were having a weird staring thing, so she didn’t miss much.

“We can go to the pool once it opens.” The last words didn’t sound nice, and Maisie didn’t like the way Uncle Aedy was talking to her dad. Not sure of what to do, her eyes darted between the two men.

Rowan ran a hand through his head. “Look, I know I should’ve—“

“And I have a guest sleeping upstairs,” Aedion added, eyebrows raised.

Her dad’s eyes widened, and for once he seemed to change his mind, his expression dropping. “I’m sorry. I’ll try Lorcan—“

“No, I—“ Aedion ran a palm over his face, shoulders dropped, and when he looked up again, it was like a different person. He smiled down at Maisie. “Come on, Kiddo.” He patted her shoulder, frowning just a little bit at her ugly braid. “Gods, I’m as bad as your mother when I wake up too soon. It doesn’t even look like I’m always asking her for more time with you, huh?”

Her uncle gave her a reassuring smile, lighting up Maisie’s mood a little.

“Just—“ Rowan cleared his throat. “Your guest… is he or she decent?”

She didn’t understand why Aedion’s smirk was so big, but at least he said, “She’s a mom—a very good one. Don’t worry about her.”

Her dad hesitated, but handed her purple backpack. Maisie knew he didn’t like leaving her with strangers, but he trusted Aedion, even if Aelin complained about him.

Rowan crouched down to remind her of everything every grown-up ever told her, but she wasn’t worried about staying with her uncle. Instead, she thought about her dad. He had already done everything Maisie thought was impossible, so she trusted him to fix things today. He did it once by taking her mom to the playground, he could do it again.

“…don’t talk to strangers, don’t listen to anyone but your uncle, and don’t leave his side, okay? Do not, under any circumstance, run off.” A pause for emphasis. “But if you do, call me when you get lost.” He lifted a brow.

Maisie let out a heavy sigh, already knowing what to do. She recited her dad’s phone number in front of him, watching him check if she was correct.

“That’s perfect.” He kissed her forehead. “Your mother’s now.”

Like she remembered the second part of it. “You’re teaching too many numbers,” Maisie protested, “It’s making me dizzy!”

Uncle Orlon said her life would be easier once she knew how to count, but she was having a tough time agreeing with him. Ever since Maisie learned it, Rowan had been making her learn phone numbers. She tried to remind him that she could know every number in the world and play Roblox if he just gave her a phone, but it was hard to change her dad’s mind.

After a long time of her dad being a big Buzzard, Aedion finally shooed him away. He banged the door closed and grimaced at the sound, then dropped her big purple bag and Fleetfoot’s smaller one at the couch.

“You hungry, Kiddo?”

“Yes,” Maisie lied. She ate breakfast at home, but she also had plans.

“I can make you a grilled cheese,” he called on his way to the kitchen. Maisie carefully laid her puppy on the floor and ran to her uncle.

“Can I eat lots of sweets and then you tell Mom and Dad that I ate grilled cheese?”

She didn’t expect Aedy’s loud laugh.“Nice try, Kiddo. I’m more scared of your mom than you.”

Maisie frowned, a little grumpy about her plan not working out, but she could convince him to give her sweets later. It worked with her mom most of the time.

“You’re lucky I did the groceries for my friend yesterday,” he said, head stuck on the fridge. “I have Brie, Gouda and provolone.”

Interesting. Maisie had no idea what any of these were. “I want grilled cheese.”

“With which cheese?”

The little girl sat up straighter. No one ever asks her that, but Uncle Aedy would mock her forever at any sign of weakness. “The yellow one.”

He snorted, but brought a very yellow cheese to the counter. “Good choice.” He paused before closing the fridge. “With salad?”

“No, thank you.”

“Good manners, Munchkin,” Aedion praised, even if Aelin always complained that he had none. “Would your parents even ask if you want salad?”

She giggled. “No, but you did.”

He sat her on the counter so Maisie could help him make the perfect grilled cheese—like cutting off the crunchy part of the bread and making triangles, or adding the perfect amount of cheese. It looked so good, Aedion even made one for himself.

“This is the bestest grilled cheese ever,” she said on the table where they ate, eyes closed to taste it better. It tasted differently from the one her parents made, but it was so good Maisie wished she could give some to Fleetfoot, who was laying at her feet.

“Really?” Aedion perked up. “Better than your dad’s?”

“No.”

Uncle Aedy didn’t seem as happy anymore, but her parents always tell her that it’s bad to lie.

He changed the subject. “So, you’ve got a dog now?”

“Yep.” She gave her uncle a big grin. “I went to a dog place with Uncle Dorian and Uncle Fen, because they were looking for one. Daddy went too, but he kept being bossy with me and didn’t even notice them. Then, I saw this little puppy, and I just loved her so much!”

“She is cute,” Aedy said, leaving the table to sit with Fleetfoot on the kitchen floor. Maisie did the same, not caring about their dirty plates. He grabbed a small toy the dog chewed on, trying to play with her. “I think Dorian posted about it on Instagram. They got two rescue boxers, right?”

“Yes,” the little girl said without explaining a lot. She was still grumpy about her uncles—why invite her if they wouldn’t do anything she said?

“Did you like them? What’re their names?”

She frowned. “Calvin and Klein.”

Aedy leaned back, laughing loud. She couldn’t figure out why it was funny.

“What? You don’t like it?”

“No,” she said with her arms crossed.

“But they’re boxers!”

Who cares? Just because the doggies have a smushed, grumpy face, it doesn’t mean they can’t have cute names. Maisie sighed. “Calvin is okay, but Klein?” she said in a squeaky voice. “Klein isn’t a good name for a dog, a kitty, a fish, not even a giraffe!”

Aedion had this smiley, funny face on. It didn’t even look like they were talking about something important. “So you think ‘Fleetfoot’ is a better name than ‘Klein’?”

“Much better. Fleetfoot is the cutest, babiest puppy name.”

“Did your dad teach you how to clean her poop?”

“Daddy’s having a tough time teaching me how to clean me after I poop.” Much less Fleetfoot. It’s too much poop for a kid to clean.

“Fair enough. She’s sleeping outside, then?”

“She’s sleeping with me.”

Aedion snorted. “I doubt your parents would let it.”

“She is!” the little girl shouted, then crossed her arms, eyes squinted at him. “If Daddy sleeps in twos, I can sleep in twos too.”

Maisie never got to join her parents’ sleepovers, so she told her dad that she’d have super fun slumber parties with Fleetfoot and not invite them too. Rowan said it was fair.

His eyebrows went so high it looked funny. “Your dad sleeps in what?” Aedy asked really loudly.

“We’re all sleeping in twos now. We spend the day together because it’s more fun, and then Daddy sleeps with Mommy, and now I’m sleeping with Fleetfoot too.”

He bent down to be eye-to-eye with Maisie, eyes as big as plates. “So your mom and your dad… they’re sleeping in the same bed now? You’re sure of that?”

She sighed. This was getting boring, and she was supposed to spend the morning at the pool. But maybe… is this why her mom’s always saying that she worries about Uncle Aedy when he’s alone? Because he needs someone to hug?

Maisie put one hand on his shoulder, petting it like she sees adults doing sometimes to someone who’s sad. “Hugging someone when you sleep is nice because it makes us feel happy and safe. That’s why we’re all sleeping in twos now,” she said, hoping he’d get the tiny suggestion.

Maybe he was worse than her mom thought. Uncle Aedy was so surprised he didn’t say anything, and his mouth was open so big a fly could come right in.

“Aw. That’s so sweet, Mais.”

Maisie heard the voice coming from the door, squealed when she saw Auntie Lys there and ran to hug her.

Aedion blinked, still looking a little frozen. “Okay, Kiddo, focus on me. Just to be sure, your mom and your dad—”

“Shh!” Lys gave him a sneaky grin while she hugged Maisie. “I didn’t know I’d see you today, Hawkie.”

The little girl giggled at the nickname. Auntie Lys started calling her that after seeing the White Hawks shirt her dad sometimes makes her wear to soccer classes. It was her favorite team—not that Maisie knew many—and she liked cheering for them with her parents.

“Is Timmy here?” The little girl asked his mom, excited with the idea. Maybe she could take them to the pool, since Aedy was a little slow today.

“No, he’s not…” Lys trailed, combing Maisie’s loose strands out of her face until she saw that crazy braid. She made a funny noise with her throat and kept going, “And I’d appreciate it if you waited a little to tell him you saw me with your uncle. You see, Timmy hasn’t met him yet, and I don’t want him to feel left out.”

Maisie walked past Lys, into the living room, and threw herself on the couch. What’s a girl gotta do to go to the pool here?

“I don’t have anything cool to tell him anyway. I know Uncle Aedy likes boys more than girls.”

Aedion ran to her, his eyes big again. “What?”

Why was he making her repeat everything she said today? “I know you and Auntie Lys aren’t boyfriend and girlfriend because you like boys more than girls.”

“No, that’s not—“ He looked between her and Lys, saying the f word that would make Maisie’s mom mad—he said it in a low voice and probably thought she didn’t hear it, but she did. Her auntie was laughing, but Aedy looked red like a tomato, and he said, “Not like that! I like boys and girls the same, okay?”

Huh. Maisie held her chin with her hand, trying to understand. People like girls or boys more, because they have to pick one to marry and have kids, puppies or kitties with. But if Uncle Aedy liked both… her eyes widened with realization.

“Is that why you’re not married? Because you can’t find a boy and a girl to marry at the same time?”

“No!” he answered super quickly. Auntie Lys had the same red face as him, but she was laughing, while Uncle Aedy looked weird and mixed up. “I don’t wanna be with two people. Not that I can’t, it’s… actually, I can’t anymore, but—“ Aedion sighed and ran a hand through his face. “I’m like your Uncle Dorian, you know? Like when he used to date your mom—“

“That’s a lie!” Maisie screamed, feeling angry for her mom and uncle both. “Uncle Dorian likes boys more than girls.”

He and Uncle Fen have puppies together. He doesn’t want to marry a girl! And him and her mom—ew. He’s her uncle, not a second daddy, and Maisie liked it that way.

“Yes, yes.” Aedy squatted to look at her in the face, holding both her shoulders. “I’m sorry, Kiddo. I’m just trying to explain that some people look for girls or boys to be with, but I look in both until I find one person to settle down with. You got it?”

“Yes,” she lied. Girls or boys was easy to understand, but if you could search in both, it’s not helpful to chop off half the people you could marry. Maisie sighed, resting on the couch. Whenever she talked about marrying a girl because boys are gross, her dad said she was too little to decide. She was finally understanding that he knew something she didn’t—or maybe he still knows something else she doesn’t yet.

Uncle Aedy looked ready to say something else when his phone rang. “It’s your mom,” he said before taking it, answering her with lots of yes and um-hum, and finally letting her—and Maisie—know that yes, they were going to the pool soon.

He passed her the phone. “Your mom wants to talk to you.”

“Mom?”

“Hey, Maisy Daisy.” The happiness in her mother’s voice made Maisie feel better too. If her mom was happy, it meant her dad was happy too, and if both of them were happy, it meant her dad fixed whatever he needed to fix. “Your father told me you were spending the morning with your uncle. Are you having fun? Are you hungry?”

“It’ll be nicer once we go to the pool,” she said, eyes squeezed at her uncle, watching him closely so he’d know she hadn’t forgotten about that promise. “And we ate grilled cheese. It was yummy.”

“That’s great, honey.”

Her mom sounded relaxed in a way it only happened when she was being lazy, and Maisie didn’t want to end it with something serious, but she had questions.

“Uncle Aedy just told me that you and Uncle Dorian were boyfriend and girlfriend.” Maisie scrunched up her nose. “That’s super duper gross. Did you do it or not?”

“AEDION TOLD YOU WHAT?!”

You can get notified when I update by either turning notifications on for @mariaofdoranelle-fics or entering my (sometimes glitchy) tag list!!

TAG LIST

I couldn’t tag the people in bold, sorry!

@aelinchocolatelover

@autumnbabylon

@bookcide

@booksandteaonarainydayislife

@cookiemonsterwholovesbooks

@courtofjurdan

@dreamer-133

@elentiyawhitethorn

@elizarikaallen

@emily-gsh

@empress-ofbloodshed

@fangirlprincess09

@goddess-aelin

@gracie-rosee

@leiawritesstories

@lululululululuop

@renxzs

@rowanaelinn

@s-uppertime

@sarahjswift

@staghorn-mountains

@superspiritfestival

@swankii-art-teacher

@thegreyj

@throneofus7

@violet-mermaid7

@wishfulimaginings

#rowaelin #rowan whitethorn #aelin galathynius #throne of glass #rowaelin fanfiction #rowan x aelin #look at us now #aelin x rowan #rowaelin fanfic

54 notes · View notes

highqueenofelfhame · 1 year

Text

a/n: i'm so sorry this one took so long to get out. it's very dialogue heavy and i struggle with dialogue and it was a tough one. i hope it was worth the wait.

rowaelin // 5k words // ciwyw masterlist // masterlist

The sun was barely above the horizon, and Aelin was already awake. Nothing but her ceiling fan and Rowan’s deep, even breathing filled the room around them as she reached for her phone and began mindlessly scrolling on social media.

Cocooned within his arms and surrounded by his scent, her nausea hadn’t been what kept her awake. It was just after eight and her body was so used to waking up for work that it refused to let her drift back into a land of sweet dreams. At least Rowan was still snoozing. He needed it as much as she did.

Upon opening twitter, she opened trending topics to see what juicy gossip was making the rounds today. A few politicians were popular for no good reason, and a handful of celebrities were having their looks celebrated per usual. Third from the bottom, however, she stopped and stared.

ROWAN WHITETHORN

His name glared at her in all capital letters, a bit of text beneath it reading: trending with Aelin Galathynius and Aedion Ashryver

Oh, gods.

The trending tag was bombarded with articles from tabloids and fan tweets, the same few pictures circulating along with them. The photo of Rowan with the little boy at dinner was the main one, but she quickly understood why her name was attached when she saw the others.

All of them were grainy, but Rowan and Aelin were no less identifiable. His arm was around the back of her chair in each picture. One he was leaning toward her and saying something in her ear. She could easily imagine that it was him asking if she was okay for the thousandth time. In another, she was pointing at Aedion with a fork, laughter dancing in her eyes while she gazed at Rowan, lips parted around words.

Aelin looked down at the tattooed arm draped over her side and the hand that rested on her stomach. There was no way for her to know how he would react to this, especially not so early in the morning. It was starting to settle over her heavily as her phone began buzzing in her palm.

MOM flashed on her screen, a picture of her and her mother from Yulemas last year bright in her face. Aelin sighed and began extricating herself from Rowan, lifting his arm and rolling out from beneath him. It would be quicker to just move over his body in order to avoid missing her mom’s call so she began crawling over him.

So abruptly it startled a squeal from deep in her chest, Rowan launched into a sitting position just as her toes hit the ground. With his eyes still closed as he asked, a little too loudly, “Are we sick?”

The commotion had her phone slipping from her hands and careening toward the ground. With reflexes no human man should possess, Rowan’s leg darted beneath the blanket and somehow managed to catch the phone with his foot before it shattered on the floor. Aelin gaped at him as he picked it up and handed it to her. His godsdamn eyes were only cracked open, what the f—

“Hi, Mom. One second.” She sandwiched the phone between her ear and shoulder, ignoring the huffy sigh from her mother. “I’m fine, spiderman. Go back to sleep.”

“I’m up,” he argued, throwing his legs over the side of the bed. Despite his words, Rowan was very much not awake. Squinty green eyes took in every inch of her body as she stood up and started walking backward to the door. She was still gawking at him as he followed after her and rubbed at his face.

“Seriously, how did you do that?” A sleepy smile formed on his face and Mala above, she wanted to kiss it until it was a full blown grin.

“It’s kind of my job, love,” he teased.

“That doesn’t happen to be Rowan Whitethorn, does it, love?” Evalin drawled, clearly having heard what Rowan called her. That little pet name that tied her veins into pretty ribbons to make her heart pound against her bones.

Shit. She was in deep fucking shit.

“Yes. Yes, that is Rowan Whitethorn.” Aelin replied, Rowan towering over her as he wrapped an arm around her waist and pressed his lips to the top of her head. It was so short and sweet that she almost wondered if it had really happened as he slipped past her and padded into the kitchen.

“And when were you going to tell me about this?” Her mother demanded. Aelin could vividly picture her pacing with one hand on her hip and the other whipping sharply through the air as she spoke.

“Technically, I did tell you.”

“You told me you were sleeping with someone. There was no indication about who it was.” The name had been left out, sure, but she had only known him as Rowan and, at the time, it was entirely too soon to tell her mother all the details.

“I mean, we were? Rowan and I are in a… situationship.” The man in question turned to look at her, eyebrows disappearing into his hairline. Aelin grimaced.

“What the hell does that even mean?!” Evalin cried.

“Did I just get demoted?” Rowan turned and looked at her, eyebrows disappearing into his hairline. Aelin shook her head at him while biting back a laugh.

“We’re seeing each other. We’re dating. He’s my boyfriend. Right?” She looked at Rowan amidst her rising panic over her mothers frantic, betrayed voice. He walked over, placing a glass of water in front of her, and leaned against the counter. Two fingers swept hair behind her ears and ran down the side of her neck. Something about his touch was a cooling balm to her nerves. “He’s my boyfriend. It’s just… it’s complicated. I was going to tell you—”

“What, when you got married?! I found out from news articles and your father getting questions about it this morning, Aelin.”

“I was going to call you this morning after everyone woke up because like I said, it’s complicated.”

“Don’t tell me you already eloped.” Rowan was grinning while he eavesdropped. Aelin reached out and punched his stomach only to be met with rock hard muscle.

“No! Gods above, Mama. No. Not— fucking hell this is worse than I thought it would be,” she grumbled, forehead thumping against her boyfriend’s chest. Rowan’s hand stroked over the back of her head sympathetically. “Can we switch to video? This is too much to do over the phone while I can’t see your face.”

The frustration in her words was evident when her voice cracked. When her mom accepted the video call, her features were soft. If she had been in Varese with her, Aelin knew her mother’s fingers would be stroking her hair to calm her down, the same way Rowan was now threading his fingers through the golden strands.

“Can you please put a shirt on before I put you in frame?” She asked, watery eyes turning onto his face.

“I’m a bit more worried about you than I am about clothing right now, love.”

“You can’t meet my mom like this.” Rowan’s eyes traced her face and body long enough that she sighed. “I’ll be fine for the thirty seconds it takes you to get there and back.”

“Baby,” her mother cut in, worry clouding her features. Aelin looked away from Rowan as he jogged across the apartment. “You’re scaring me.”

“Because I’m scared. Of everything and your reaction and what Dad is going to say and— all of it is scary.” The worst part was that she wasn’t even entirely sure why she was crying. On a normal day, hard conversations were difficult, of course, but nothing she had ever cried over. Her parent’s gave her unconditional love. There wasn’t a worry in her mind that she would ever cease to be the center of their entire world. These hormones were going to kill her.

When Rowan came back, he picked up her water and pulled on her hand until she stood, leading her toward the couch. Evalin was quiet and patient while he got her tucked in with a blanket and settled beside her. His face held no judgment as he brushed tears from her cheeks.

“Everything’s okay,” he promised her, pointer finger bumping beneath her chin. Aelin smiled a little and shook her head before arranging her phone so her mom could see him.

“Mama, this is Rowan. Rowan, this is my Mom, Evalin.”

“It’s good to finally meet you, Mrs—”

“You’ll call me Evalin,” she interrupted with the wave of her hand. Rowan smiled and nodded once before looking back at Aelin.

“It’s good to meet you, Evalin,” he repeated, trying her name out for the first time. Aelin’s mother beamed and the anxiety that was creeping and crawling over her nerves paused for the time being.

“Is Dad around?”

“Right here, Fireheart,” Rhoe slid into view, immediately frowning when he took in her tear streaked face.

“Before you start, I’m not crying because of Rowan. I mean, technically I am, but it’s not anything bad. Rowan, my father Rhoe, Dad, I’m sure you already know him, but this is my boyfriend Rowan Whitethorn.”

“We’ve met a few times actually,” Rowan chimed in, lifting a hand in greeting. “It’s nice to see you, sir.”

“You too, son.” So far, so good. Both of her parents were smiling and Rowan was a steadying weight beside her. Somehow he felt more at ease than she did. Aelin just had to get the next part out without falling apart. A deep and almost cleansing breath filled her lungs as she looked up at the ceiling to keep the tears from rolling down her cheeks. Gods, this was ridiculous.

“We um…” Aelin exhaled and looked at Rowan who nodded encouragingly. “I want to start off by saying that this is still really new. Our relationship and everything attached to it is really new. And I really was planning to call you today. I decided on that well before the news broke this morning.”

“Sweetheart. Just say it,” her mother said, giving Aelin a knowing look. Of course Evalin had it figured out before she had even tried to search her brain for a coherent sentence. Hell, she had probably known the entire time.

“We’re having a baby.” Aelin’s lip quivered, and Rowan reached over to lace their fingers with the hand that wasn’t around her shoulders. She sunk into him, resting her head on his shoulder while gnawing on her lip.

“Not planned, I take it,” her father tried to joke, and despite the tears that had sprung free, Aelin laughed.

“No. Definitely not planned but not a bad thing either.”

“I knew it as soon as you spit out that piece of candy a few weeks ago.” Evalin beamed, dabbing at her eyes with the pocket square she had stolen from Rhoe’s suit. “Are you happy?”

“Yes. Scared as hell, but I’m happy. Are…” Aelin looked at Rowan, “You’re happy, yeah? Now isn’t the time to ask but we haven’t really addressed that.”

“I’m very happy,” he promised, leaning in to kiss her temple. Aelin let out a shaky breath and laughed again, rubbing at her eyes with her sleeves.

“I was an emotional wreck the entire time I was pregnant with you. I’m sorry that I passed it along.” To her credit, Evalin did look a little sorry. Aelin had grown up hearing about it off and on. Rhoe frequently reminded her that she was a spitfire from the moment of conception.

“The hormones are a bitch. And the morning sickness? It’s all the time and it’s awful.” The only time she didn’t seem to be heaving the entire contents of her stomach was when Rowan was there to soothe it away. Sure, she had been sick a few times over the weekend, but something about the way he smelled seemed to keep it at bay for the most part. Human bodies were so bizarre.

“You are supposed to come home in a few months,” Rhoe wondered out loud. Rowan seemed to stiffen a little beside her. “Are your plans changing in that regard?”

“I don’t know,” Aelin admitted with a shrug and a sigh. “I’m working every day that I feel able to. Except for today and yesterday because Lysandra put Aedion on a plane. The bastard is still asleep right now, actually, but I am keeping up with work. Usually just half days because I’m exhausted and sick all the time. And Rowan is so busy with the season we only see each other on the weekends. If I come home when I was supposed to, though, I’m sure his teammates and fans would be thrilled if he stopped getting red cards.”

“If you think I’m going to play better while you’re pregnant on another continent, you’re insane.” Her parents chuckled, but she knew how serious he was. Rowan tended to worry to the extreme and her being away wouldn’t help.

“We’ll cross that bridge when we get closer to it. How’s that?” Aelin looked up at him and he nodded. It would have to do for now. There was too much going on with Fireheart for her to abandon her responsibilities entirely, baby or no baby.

“Is there anything you need from us?” Her father asked, concern heavy in his brow. Not that she could think of, and she said as much.

“Between Rowan and Aedion, it’s all covered. Plus Lys is coming at the end of the week when Aedion leaves. I have my first appointment next week. I did have a blood draw that confirmed the pregnancy because I was so sick I couldn’t keep anything down. Lysandra berated me into an ER visit. They gave me some nausea medicine that seems to be helping, but we’ll know more about the baby next week. I’m not even really sure how far along I am aside from the basic math of when we met.”

“When you met?” Evalin’s eyebrows flew toward the sky and Aelin choked.

“Sometime around then,” she tried to save her prior phrasing, but her mom saw straight through it. Rhoe, on the other hand, looked eager to think about anything but his daughter’s sex life.

“What the hell are you already doing awake?” Aedion grumbled from the hall, rubbing his eyes as he stumbled into the room.

“FaceTime with Mom and Dad.” Her manicured hand patted the open seat next to her.

“Oh shit, already? I thought it would be this afternoon.” Aedion dropped down beside her and leaned in, waving to his aunt and uncle.

“Well. Mom found out about me and Rowan before I could even call her. Pictures of us from last night seem to be making the rounds all over the internet.” Rowan’s head whipped toward her, eyes wide and lips parted. His mouth was moving to form words, but before he could get an apology out she added, “It’s okay.”

The apology came anyway, and Aelin’s eyes jumped from his face to her mom and dad’s. Evalin’s lip quivered at the sincerity and Rhoe looked like he respected the man even more already.

Aedion reached around to pat Rowan’s shoulder sympathetically. “It comes with the territory. Surely you know how famous you are.”

“I mean, sure, when I’m playing.”

“Oh, you sweet child,” Evalin mused, causing Aelin to crack a wide grin. Their family knew better than anyone that certain athletes tended to sky-rocket into full on celebrity status. The tweets she had seen about all of them showed that tenfold.

“Rowan, you are quite literally a superstar,” Aedion told him. “You aren’t just huge on the field. Surely someone has mentioned to you that you’re insanely famous.”

“My agent and PR team are always nagging me to go to events and get on social media but… no one has ever really…” Rowan trailed off at the looks on everyones faces. Aelin was holding back a grin, her bottom lip tucked between her teeth.

“Baby, you’re kind of a big deal. And your face and body really don’t hurt,” Aelin told him, squeezing his hand. “Like people were so excited that someone saw you out and about.”

“I– what?”

“Okay, I think Aedion and I need to give Rowan a crash course in his fame. I’ll call you later?” Aelin said to her parents, who nodded in agreement.

“We love you. And we are absolutely thrilled about a grandbaby,” Evalin swore, a sentiment that Rhoe repeated almost verbatim. A weight lifted from her chest as she once again felt like fighting off tears.

“I love you,” she choked out just before ending the call, and then she was fully slumping into Rowan’s side. Giggles bubbled out of her all over again as she looked up at him. “I can’t believe you don’t know how famous you are.”

“What are people saying?”

“This one is my favorite.” Aedion showed Rowan a screenshot of his phone. It was a tweet that read: Look, I know we’re excited that 1. Rowan was out for once and 2. That he was spotted with sOCCER PRINCESS AELIN GALATHYNIUS??? But can we just talk about how good Aedion Ashryver looks?

A choked sound came out of Aelin before she could stop it, snickering following immediately after. Of course that would be his favorite.

She quickly opened the app, letting Rowan scan through news headlines and fan tweets while she peered at the screen with him. Most of them were good. A lot of the fans seemed to be happy about their potential romantic link. A few expressed their distaste, saying that Aelin was chasing fame after falling into irrelevancy. Those made her laugh, but Rowan didn’t seem to find the humor in it.

“They shouldn’t be talking about you like that,” he grit out. Aelin merely shrugged her shoulders.

“You can’t win them all. I’ve always been a little polarizing amongst the soccer community, anyway.” Gods, if that wasn’t the truth she didn’t know what was.

A lot of people accused her of nepotism and everything that fell under that umbrella. Yes, she was a nepo baby. But she was doing her best to make her own way in the world without relying too heavily on what her parents had built. Starting Fireheart was the first step of that and while they had contributed financially, it had been her idea. They just backed it with money when she needed the initial boost. Aelin liked to think that, relevant or not, she was using her name and generational wealth to put good back into the world.

“I had no idea I was this… big,” Rowan murmured, finally handing her phone back to her. There was an innuendo that Aelin’s childish mind couldn’t ignore. Her teeth clamped down on her bottom lip to bite back a laugh. “I knew Fenrys was, but he feeds into it. He likes the attention. I just assumed that since I stayed out of everything that didn’t have to do with the game, I was just known for playing.”

“There are girls that are dying to be me right now.” Aelin was grinning, but Rowan still wore a displeased frown. “Hey. It’s really okay. It was going to come out eventually and we don’t have to confirm or deny anything yet.”

“The thought of having to publicly comment on my personal life is so irritating.”

“Your comments can just come in the form of agreeing with what I put on social media or whatever statements I put out. You don’t have to do anything that you don’t want to do, Rowan. People are going to speculate regardless, and while I would eventually like to talk about us, I don’t have to.” She shrugged like it was simple. It wasn’t, but she would make it as easy for him as she could. Rowan sighed and rubbed his eyes with his forefinger and thumb. “I bet you’re wishing you went back to sleep when I told you to, huh?”

“You shut up,” he murmured, a playful bite to his words.

“People did find your instagram, by the way. And you’re only following me,” Aelin pointed out. “Maybe today we can post a picture or something and follow at least your teammates?”

“You’d help me with that?” Rowan looked surprised.

“Of course. I’m really good at social media. We’ll get you all set up before you go home later. I’ll even help you with everything you want to post. It’s not like I won’t be around to help you out for the next eighteen years at least.” Rowan squeezed her hand in thanks, his lips finally tipping into a smile at her joke. A bit of relief flowed through her at his smile. “With that settled, I’m going to shower and I believe you promised me chocolates.”

“That I did.” Rowan pressed a chaste kiss to her knuckles as she stood and headed walked toward the bathroom.

Everything with her parents had gone exactly as expected. The fact that they were happy about it despite the circumstances meant the world to her. Having that support in her back pocket at all times, no matter what was more important than she would ever let on. Rowan blended seamlessly in the conversations and she could only imagine how charming he would be when they officially met in person.

Everything was still beyond terrifying, but she tentatively felt like everything was going to be okay. She hoped, anyway.

~*~

“I want to talk to you about something,” Aedion said, waiting to speak until the shower was on and the soft thud of the shower door indicated she was inside. Her cousin leaned forward with his elbows on his knees, rubbing his hands together as he looked over at Rowan. “She would kick my ass if she found out, so please don’t mention it for the time being.”

“I’m all ears.” Rowan had been expecting this. The two hadn’t spent any time together alone thus far, and since he was more like a brother than anything else, he’d anticipated the big brother talk. It had only been a matter of when, not if.

“Aelin has… Gods, she’s been through some shit. I don’t know how much she’s told you about her last relationship, but it did a fucking number on her. For years she was a shell of herself and it was rare to even get her to smile. It would be a lie to say that she didn’t start acting like herself until she met you.”

“What do you mean? She seemed in good enough spirits when I met her,” Rowan said, thinking back to the spitfire woman in the bar. Aedion’s head shook.

“Aelin has always been good at putting on a front. We call it her insufferable swagger. While it’s part of who she is, it lacks a certain edge. Being able to rile you up about soccer was likely just part of that,” her cousin explained, scratching at his jaw. “Once she started telling Lysandra about you, something was different. The first call they had after, Lys burst into tears as soon as they were off the phone. Normally she keeps Aelin’s secrets, but she couldn’t even keep it from me because she was so happy that she just seemed normal.”

“I can’t take credit for any of that.”

“Maybe not. But we all think you sparked something in her. You brought her back to life, Rowan. Even just being here, it feels like Aelin, not the person she tried to be to make us not worry about her. There were times when she told us she felt like dying. That she would never try, but she was drowning and dying sounded like the more peaceful option. Constantly she told us how tired she was, and she never meant physically. It was the kind of exhaustion you feel deep in your bones that feels suffocating. But once you walked into the picture, everything about her has been different.”

Rowan turned the words over carefully, lips twisting while he considered. Aelin had always been the same to him, but he could see what Aedion meant in some ways. Now she was much sharper with her teasing tongue. It had him wondering if things would have been different without a troubled past relationship.

None of it sat well with him. The idea of Aelin withdrawing into herself and withering away to fragile, dried petals made him want to hit something. That anyone had ever dampened her golden light was beyond him. It took a special kind of asshole to do that to a strong and brilliant woman. He didn’t know what to say. Thankfully, Aedion had a little more to give.

“I can’t stand to see her go back to that place. I like you, Rowan. I do. But if I think for a single second that you’re not good for her or the baby I will not hesitate in beating the absolute shit out of you.”

“If you come to that conclusion, I would probably be in agreement. I’d let you.” It was the truth. Might even outright ask for it. Rowan had always accepted the punishments that he deserved.

“Glad we’re on the same page,” Aedion murmured, finally relaxing enough to sit back against the couch. The shower shut off moments later, the sounds of Aelin readying for the day filling in the silence.

When she finally opened the door, makeup and hair done with a robe wrapped around her body, she chirped, “Chocolate?”

“Yeah,” Rowan chuckled. “Chocolate.”

~*~

While they ate lunch at a little cafe downtown, Aelin had helped him make his first ever Instagram post. It was a picture of him leaning back in his chair, looking out at the bustling city around them. Despite feeling that he always looked awkward in photos, this one looked natural and candid. Aelin called him her boyfriend again and he was smiling when she snapped the winning shot. So far it had amassed several thousand likes and comments. Rowan wasn’t sure what to do with any of it.

Three dozen chocolate truffles and several bakery items later, Aelin and Rowan wandered back into the apartment. Aedion had let them go out alone for some time together. Now that he knew people were eager to sneak photos of him, he noticed cell phones turned their direction all morning. It was hard to not be frustrated about it, but Aelin’s touch was a soothing balm to the rising anger. If she wasn’t bothered he would try his hardest not to be, too.

“I probably need to go soon,” he said, sitting on the edge of her bed while she shucked off her leggings and pulled on a pair of little shorts. A sullen look pulled on her features as she stood between his legs, hands resting on his neck.

“Would it work if I said that I want you to stay?” Nails lightly scratched at his scalp and it was an effort to keep his eyes from slipping shut.

“It would make it harder for me to leave, but I do have practice in the morning. I can’t be late.” Never mind that he wished it weren’t the case. If she outright asked, he probably would stay and then hate himself for it tomorrow.

“Fine,” she sighed, hands sliding down his shoulders. Rowan wasn’t sure what it was about her touch, but it drove him mental in the best way. The loss of her skin on his was a new kind of hell he hadn’t known existed until he met her. “I have a scan next week. Do you want to go with me?”

“Do you want me to be there?” If she didn’t, he wouldn’t go. It might kill him a little, but he would stay away if it was what she wanted.

“I obviously want you there. Otherwise I wouldn’t have told you about it. That wasn’t my question. ” Ah, there was that sass Aedion had talked about earlier.

“I want to,” he swore, fingers trickling up and down her outer thighs. A smile took over her entire face and damn him, he couldn’t help his own grin to match.

“It’s Thursday afternoon. I can text you the details about where so you can meet me there from practice.” Rowan nodded as he collected the few things he brought with him and followed her out to the living room.

“It was good to meet you, man,” He told Aedion, the two bumping fists casually. Aelin was smiling while she watched, her fingers covering her mouth like an eager child.

“Hopefully I can make the trip over here again soon.” Rowan would genuinely enjoy that. Aedion seemed cool and cared so much about his cousin that he doubted he would ever have anything negative to say about the man.

Aelin led him to the front door, their loosely linked fingers swinging between them. Unable to help himself, he pushed her hair back from her face. Her eyes hid a secret smile as she gazed up at him. Gods, she was so beautiful.

“I’ll see you Thursday, then?”

Rowan nodded, “And I’ll talk to you every day in between.” It felt a little cheesy to say it out loud, but Aelin’s smile was enough to chase away the self consciousness he felt.

She stopped him with a hand around his wrist as he turned to open the door. When he turned back to look at her, Aelin rocked up on her toes and pressed a soft kiss to the corner of his mouth. He had a feeling she knew it was a teasing move. Those brilliant turquoise and gold eyes confirmed it when she pulled away, mirth swimming in their depths. Such a cruel, beautiful thing she was.

“Drive safe,” she said, one more little smile shared between them before he walked out the door and began his short trip back to Doranelle.

if your tag is bold, it wouldn't let me tag you.

@fancysludgeshoelamp @kritical24 @readandlisten @icantfindmychashma @westofmoon @helwanderer @latenighthazymusings @lululululululuop @rowanaelinn @drywhiskers @constant-disappointment-and-gay @throneofus7 @princess-rumi-blog1 @the-regal-warrior @holdthefrickup @baby-babayaga @althelkingshorses @empress-ofbloodshed-writing @earthtolinds @lunadorned @adrianaslv @lunarwitch25 @superspiritfestival @larisssss @renxzs @1islessthan3books @darknessofoceans @autumnbabylon @backtobl4ck @aelinchocolatelover @besiber24 @s-uppertime @livingmylifeforme @tothestarsandwhateverend @kritical24 @sleeping-and-books @carranam-mates @fireheart-violet @aelinchocolatelover @basicbittywitty @goddess-aelin @shyvioletcat @punkassbookjockey26

170 notes · View notes

autumnshighlady · 2 years

Text

Guys My Age

Gavriel x f!reader

summary: You’re Lorcan and Elide’s daughter, as well as Aedion’s best friend. Your family is staying with Gavriel and Aedion for the weekend, but you’re too sore from sparring with Aedion to go out for dinner. Gavriel volunteers to stay home with you and help you out….

warnings: smut (18+), oral sex (f receiving), age gap, best friend’s dad, dad’s best friend, corruption kink, size kink, fingering, a bit of fluff because I cannot help myself

word count: 8.5k

requests:

“what about losing your virginity to Gavriel? I feel like Gavriel would be great because he is older” -🌻

“hello! Would you be open to doing dbsf!Gavriel or bsfd!Gavriel?”

“hey! would you mind writing about bsfd!gavriel? corruption kink make me 😳“

“will you write losing your virginity to Gavriel please?”

DO NOT REPOST ANYWHERE

***this is the most requested fic I’ve gotten, I’m so sorry it took so long but it’s finally here! I combined a couple Gavriel requests into one big fic of pure filth, enjoy and please please please let me know what you think! also this is barely proofread because I’m too excited to post it so ignore any mistakes lol -Amara

✧✧✧✧✧✧✧✧✧✧✧✧✧✧✧✧✧✧

Groaning, you reach your arm to rub the back of your shoulder. The muscles shot with pain, and you hissed.

“I’m so sorry.” Aedion apologised for the millionth time that evening.

“It’s fine,” You sighed, gently rubbing the muscle. “It was an accident.”

“Are you sure you’re ok alone?” Your best friend said.

You resisted the urge to roll your eyes. A few hours ago you had been sparring with Aedion by the lake, falling into your usual routine. However, you caught a glimpse of Gavriel, your best friend’s father, emerging from the lake shirtless. You couldn’t help yourself – that muscled, tattooed body distracted you and as a result, you did not see Aedion’s elbow headed in your direction. You were thrown sideways, colliding with a rock and wrenching the muscles in your back and shoulder.

Hence the soreness. Aedion had apologised countless times, especially after seeing your father Lorcan’s enraged face. For a solid moment you had thought he would rip Aedion’s arms from his body, but your mother Elide quickly calmed him down. Her gentle presence eased the tension, and was apparently enough to convince Lorcan not to kill your best friend.

However, it did put a wrench in tonight's plans. The five of you were supposed to head into the nearby town for dinner and meet up with other members of Aelin’s court, but you did not feel up to it anymore with the ache in your shoulder.

“I’ll be fine.” You snapped, growing tired of everyone’s fussing. “It’s just a sore muscle, I’ll live, Aedion.”

“I should stay with you,” Lorcan said as he entered the room, no doubt having eavesdropped on the conversation. “The rest of you can go out, I’ll stay here.”

“Dad, it’s ok I swear,” You protested angrily. “I’m not a child. Besides, you and mom love going to that restaurant. So go.”

“No.” Your father shot back, glaring at Aedion once again, who had the good sense to shrink from his gaze.

Before you could snap back, a gentler voice spoke up.

“I’ll stay home with her.” Gavriel spoke up.

You turned to look at him, trying not to blush. You hated yourself for crushing on a man who was not only your best friend’s dad, but your father’s best friend. But you couldn’t help it, the man was gorgeous – that blonde hair framed his sharp face perfectly, and those tawny eyes captivated you, sending shivers down your spine every time his gaze landed on you. Sometimes you got a glimpse of the tattoos around his neck and on his chest, and imagined what it would be like to have that towering figure leaning over you, large hands roaming your body and exploring every inch of you.

Sometimes you found yourself staring at him from a distance, doing your best to be subtle. Occasionally Gavriel met your gaze, smirking slightly before moving on. Thankfully, Aedion and Lorcan remained oblivious to your desires – desires which have now landed you in an interesting predicament.

“I’m 20,” You said, trying your luck one more time. “I don’t need a babysitter.”

“It’s not babysitting,” Gavriel countered, leaning against the countertop. “I’m aware you’re not a child. But I have some chores to do here anyways, and you may have hit your head during the fall. I can be here just in case.”

This seemed to satisfy your father. “Fine.” Lorcan grunted.

You were torn between delight and dread – on the one hand, the thought of being alone with Gavriel excited you. The older male was the primary focus of your fantasies that had you waking up hot and bothered in the morning, to the point where your mother thought you were sick. But on the other hand, being alone with your best friend’s gorgeous father…

“Fine.” You sighed, rubbing your shoulder again. “Have fun on your night out.”

Lorcan and Elide kissed you goodbye, Lorcan silently promising death to Gavriel should anything happen to you. Aedion apologised once again, which earned him a punch in the arm with your good shoulder. A deserved one, Aedion said. Within 15 minutes they were out the door, leaving you alone with Gavriel.

You sat silently for a minute, lazily rubbing your shoulder. Gavriel grabbed a glass from the cupboard and began filling it with water. “Would you like some water?” He asked.

“Sure, thanks.” You murmured, only letting your eyes meet his for a second. He was wearing a simple, loose v-neck white shirt with the sleeves rolled up. You allowed yourself to gaze a second longer, mouth watering at the tattoos visible beneath the fabric.

Gavriel smiled, filling up a glass and striding over to where you were seated on the couch. Standing in front of you, he handed you the glass. For a second, his fingers lingered, brushing ever so slightly against yours. You blushed slightly, all of the visions of where those fingers had been in your dreams flashing through your mind.

Shut up, this is your best friend’s father and your father’s best friend, you should not be thinking about him like this. You scolded yourself.

“That rock got you pretty good,” Gavriel said, taking a seat beside you. “May I take another look?”

“Uh, sure.” You said, cheeks burning at having him so close in proximity. Gavriel had healed the vicious scrape that was made across your back, but the muscles were still sore as predicted.

You were wearing a wide-necked loose shirt, luckily allowing you to slip one of the sleeves down the shoulder without having to take it off entirely. Turning to face the other way, you let the left sleeve of your shirt fall down to just above your elbow, exposing the sore area.

A gentle hand placed itself on your skin, and your body tingled. You hated yourself for reacting this way to a simple touch, but couldn’t help it – Gavriel’s hand set your nerves aflame, the roughness of it contrasting with his soft touches. His other hand placed itself on your opposite shoulder, making you even more squirmy.

You hissed in pain as he pushed down slightly near your shoulder blade.

“Sorry,” Gavriel’s voice was apologetic. “My healing magic can not do much for sore muscles, but I have an ointment in my room that can help. Would you like that?”

“Yes please.” You said quietly, desperate for the ache in your shoulder to just fuck off.

The older male smiled, pulling your shirt back to its original position and standing up. “Come along,” He said. “Can’t have my son put you in pain now, can we?”

“I punched him back, we’re even.” You clipped, and Gavriel laughed as you headed to the end of the hallway.

“Yes, I imagine that does square you up.” He chuckled.

Twisting the knob, Gavriel opened the door to his room and you stepped in carefully. You had never been in Gavriel’s room, not allowing yourself to see something that some would consider intimate. It was a nice room though, an extremely large bed in the centre with a white rug and comfortable fireplace. Bookshelves adorned one wall, and a pile of weapons much like your father’s was stashed in the other corner.

“Cosy.” You said, taking in the surroundings, noting the candles everywhere.

Gavriel began grabbing something from the drawer. “Yes, I quite like this place.” He said, pulling out a silver tin. “Ah, here it is.”

You stared at him for a second, those tawny eyes made brighter with the glow of the fire. “I can’t exactly reach the sore parts…” You admitted sheepishly, praying Gavriel didn’t notice your flushed cheeks.

“No worries,” Gavriel said, twisting open the lid. “It’ll be easier if I apply it anyway. It would be best if you removed your shirt and laid face down on the bed. This stuff stains and I would hate to get it on your clothing. But if you are uncomfortable with that we can work around it and I will do my best to be careful”

Your mouth went dry. Taking off your shirt for your best friend’s father and father’s best friend? Part of you knew it would be a bad idea, but the other part of you saw this as a subtle opportunity. What was the harm in letting the older male you were crushing on massage your back?

“It’s ok,” You breathed shakily. “I’m fine with it.”

Something flashed in Gavriel’s eyes, but you couldn’t tell what. “Alright, I will turn around. Let me know when you’re ready.”

True to his word, Gavriel turned around. You removed your shirt, grunting at the painful movement in your shoulder before discarding it on the floor. Carefully, you laid yourself facedown on the bed, and the soft sheets felt heavenly.

“Ready.” You mumbled.

A few seconds later you felt the bed shift to your left. Gavriel had kneeled beside you, allowing himself better access to your exposed back. “Tell me if it hurts too much, or if you’d like me to stop.” He said.

You nodded, biting your lip. You tried not to let your excitement show at the anticipation of the older male’s hands on your body. Countless nights had been spent imagining yourself in a scenario like this, laying on Gavriel's bed deprived of your clothes…

You knew you were going straight to hell for this. You could smell Gavriel’s scent so close to you, and were grateful you were facedown in the pillow.

Finally, those large hands found your skin, spreading the warm ointment along your shoulder blade. You bit your lip, and it took everything in you not to moan at his touch. You were so small compared to Gavriel, so delicate underneath his battle-scarred hands. He gently massaged the ointment into your back and shoulder, its healing properties already relaxing your muscles.

“Is this okay?” Gavriel muttered, gently brushing some stray hairs out of the way.

“Yes,” Your voice was little more than a breath. “It’s perfect.”

You could have sworn he smirked, his strokes becoming deeper as he worked on the knotted muscles in your back. Relief and something more intense began to wash over you as he moved up to the top of your shoulder, fingers curling around towards your collarbone as they roamed your skin. Heat built at your core and you tried to think of anything else, anything to distract you from the fact your best friend’s father had his fingertips just above your collarbone while you laid down shirtless on his bed.

He’s just trying to be helpful, You chided yourself. He feels bad that his son injured you, he’s just being friendly.

Yet you could not help the sinful thoughts that crept into your mind as Gavriel’s tattooed hands moved down your upper back, caressing gentle strokes into the muscles. The room was warm, adding to the heat your body was already radiating at his touch. Never before had a male touched you, much to your embarrassment. You were so inexperienced compared to the much older male whose fingers ever so slightly grazed your ribcage–

Before you could stop yourself, you moaned as his thumb dug into a spot below your shoulder blade, releasing a knot of tension as his fingertips skimmed your side just inches from your breast.

Fuck.

Embarrassment washed over you and your cheeks went red with shame. You had just moaned as your father’s best friend’s touch.

“I’m so sorry.” You stammered, squeezing your eyes shut against the pillow.

“It’s alright, little one,” Gavriel said softly, his fingers making another gentle sweep up your sensitive sides. “It’s perfectly natural for your body to react to something that feels good.”

You blushed even harder at the nickname, clenching your thighs together slightly and praying he didn’t notice. Your arousal was quickly heightening, those fingers touching such sensitive areas along your back and sides…

“Besides,” Gavriel’s voice dropped slightly, heating your blood. “I’m sure the males you have taken to bed delighted in your sounds.”

You froze, embarrassment quickly taking over. In your time being friends with Aedion, he had taken to bed more females and males than you could have counted. He was not ashamed of it, nor were you judgemental about it – it was simply a fact everyone knew to be true. But given how close you were with Aedion, his father must have assumed that you were the same as him when it came to lovers.

Wanting to crawl into a hole and die, you said quietly, “I wouldn’t really know.”

Gavriel’s motions paused for a moment, as if he were contemplating something. “Have you not been with a male before?”

Burning with shame, you could not bring yourself to speak, so you merely shook your head to confirm. Your virginity was not something you had taken great effort to preserve or anything, for it truly was not a big deal to you. But to put it simply, there was no male you encountered that you thought would satisfy your first time.

Except for the male kneeling beside your half-naked body.

“Darling,” Gavriel’s tone was gentle. “Am I the first male to put his hands on your bare skin like this?”

“Yes.” You whispered, lifting your head from the pillow and turning it to the side, letting your gaze rest upon Gavriel. His tawny eyes met yours, his motions still paused..

“If this is too much or is uncomfortable in any way and you would rather a female healter or someone else apply the ointment–”

“No,” You cut him off, not wanting Gavriel to stop. “It’s ok. I want it to be you.”

I want it to be you.

So many implications in that phrase, ones that went beyond the question of if you were okay with the golden-haired man applying the ointment to your naked back. As you locked eyes with Gavriel, you could tell he knew what you were feeling. Those fleeting touches, those piercing stares and smirks perhaps hadn’t been so innocent after all. Maybe you were not deluding yourself into thinking you imagined Gavriel’s eyes roaming your body as you strode towards the water in your swimwear. And Gavriel was no fool, you knew he could tell how your body reacted to his touch. He had centuries of experience on him, and surely could spot, and scent, the signs of arousal that surely radiated from your body.

You had desired him for so long, secretly wishing he was the one who could be your first. You imagined countless nights that he would take care of you, exploring your body slowly and teaching you everything he had learned in centuries of pleasure. You imagined how large his fingers would feel inside of you compared to your own, not that you had spent much time pleasuring yourself. No, you wanted him to do it, the man who was your best friend’s father and your father’s best friend.

“Are you sure?” Gavriel’s tone was serious, cautious even – as if he knew the scandalous implications of the direction this was headed.

You nodded. Gods, he was so much older than you, it was so wrong, yet you couldn’t think of anything you wanted more.

Stroking your back gently, Gavriel almost growled, his voice deep and velvety, “I want to hear you say it.”

Shaking, you took a breath, preparing to utter the words you had only dreamed of saying to the older male: “I want it to be you, Gavriel.”

Gavriel smirked, applying more ointment to his hands and placing them on your back – both sides this time, not just the sore area. But his touches were different this time, still gentle but more dominant and filled with assurance. You sighed and tried not to moan again as his hands spread on either side of your spin and worked their way down your back before coming back up to your shoulders. This time, however, those large fingers stroked your sides sensually as they moved across your body.

“Fuck.” You couldn’t help but murmur, eyes fluttering at the pleasure.

“Did you like that, little one?” Gavriel’s chuckle was seductive, and gone was the lighthearted tone from earlier. The strokes he pressed into your skin were teasing, more pleasure driven and much less innocent.

“Mmhm.” Was all you could bring yourself to hum in response, clenching your legs even tighter to try and relieve the building pressure. Every part of your body screamed for more, but Gavriel did not push it.

You began to realise that he would not give you what you both knew you wanted unless you asked him for it. Both of you knew how poorly it would be received if anyone knew Gavriel was about to bed you – between the age difference and the fact he was your best friend’s father and father’s best friend, the dynamic within your little group would surely implode.

But nobody had to know, right? From the way Gavriel’s touches teased you, you knew that he was aware you wanted him to be the first male to take you to bed, he was just waiting for the green light to do so. It warmed your heart how respectful he was, how he wanted it to be 100% your choice how far to go. He was a good male, through and through.

And there was no other one you wanted to lay with for your first time.

Taking a breath for courage, you lifted your head off the pillow and pushed yourself up slightly. Immediately, Gavriel’s hands flew from your skin, concern written across his face momentarily, likely wondering if he had just fucked up majorly. But instead of standing up and walking away, you simply turned your body over and layed back down on your back rather than your front.

Your bare chest was exposed to the golden male, yet he did not look at it. Instead, his tawny eyes bore into yours, scanning your face. Part of you was terrified that somehow you had severely misread the situation, that Gavriel was about to get angry and kick you out. But the other part of you knew he was dying to ravish you, and gods you wanted that too.

“Do you know why I haven’t been with any males yet, Gavriel?” You asked, voice dropping.

Gavriel said nothing, just cocked his head and kept eye contact with you, as if your eyes were the only thing keeping him from glancing down at your chest on display for him.

“Because I knew none of them would be able to please me.” You sighed, praying you sounded at least somewhat seductively enticing. “Because my friends have complained about how poorly males our age are in bed, how selfish they are when it comes to pleasure.”

You knew Gavriel’s restraint was barely holding on – if he had been a lesser male he would have surely pounced on you by now, eager to take you up on what you were so clearly offering. But despite the tautness in his muscles and the growing bulge in his pants, Gavriel remained still.

So you tried one last time to break him.

“Because they weren’t you.” You purred, reaching out and resting your hand atop of his.

That appeared to be his undoing, for the golden-haired male leaned forward and placed his free, tattooed hand on the bed beside your pillow. His muscular body towered over you, and you began to realise just how small you were beneath him. His beautiful hands that had slain so many enemies were almost twice as big as yours, and the body attached to them even more so. You had always appreciated how….large… Gavriel was, but up close like this it began to awaken something inside of you.

“Am I to understand, little one,” Gavriel said, his face only a foot away from yours. “That you want me to fuck you for your first time?”

The mere utterance of those words turned you on more than you thought was possible. “Yes.” You replied with confidence.

Gavriel smirked, leaning in slightly more. “I need to hear you say it for me. Tell me what you want and I will give it to you.”

This male was going to be the death of you. You so badly wanted him to just touch you already, but part of you liked the buildup, the tension – the making sure you knew what you were doing.

“I want you to fuck me, Gavriel.” You breathed. “I want you to be my first.”

A growl emitted from the older male’s throat, and he manoeuvred his hand out from under your touch and instead brought it to your face. With tenderness, he stroked your cheek, never breaking eye contact once.

“You want me to make you feel good, little one?” He purred. “You want me to show you what it feels like to have your body worshipped? To feel so good you have tears streaming down that pretty face of yours? You want me to show you how it’s done, don’t you, baby?”

You moaned, shuddering under his touch. He was so close, that golden hair mere inches away from tickling your shoulders.

“So responsive,” Gavriel continued, stroking farther down your face and reaching the side of your neck to caress it there. “Have you ever touched yourself, little one? Brought yourself to the edge with those fingers of yours?”

“Not really.” You answered truthfully – there were certainly nights where you dipped your hand between your legs, usually thinking about your best friend’s father as you played with yourself. But it was only half hearted, and it was never enough to bring you close to an orgasm and thus, you never tried much.

But your confession snapped something in Gavriel. His eyes darkened, and he brought his lips down to your cheek and planted a feather-light kiss there. “Oh little one,” He murmured. “I am going to ruin you. I’m going to make you feel so good that no other male or female will be able to compete. Even if you have someone else buried deep inside of you one day, you will only be thinking of me and how only I can truly make you feel good.”

Your entire body shuddered at his words. You had expected Gavriel to be excited maybe at the idea of taking your virginity, but this newfound possessiveness and assurance took you by surprise. And you loved it.

It was true – you could tell by the way he had caressed your body that this male was going to corrupt you entirely, mind body and soul. He was going to claim you as his, and his only. The idea thrilled you.

At your pathetic whimper, Gavriel finally took pity on you. His lips moved from your cheek to your mouth where he finally kissed you. Eagerly you opened your mouth up to him, arching your back as this lips expertly claimed yours.

Holy Gods, Gavriel was kissing you.

Your head spun as the older male slipped his tongue into your mouth, gently caressing it to get a taste of you. Moaning into him, you reached your hands up and wrapped them around his thick, tattooed neck and tried to pull him closer. Gavriel obliged, lowering his body so his clothed chest was almost pressed against your bare one. His scent completely enveloped you, overwhelming your senses. You had been kissed before – hell, you had drunkenly made out with Lysandra a couple of times. But never like this, with so much assurance and fire.

You whimpered as Gavriel’s lips left yours, and he chuckled darkly. “Now, now, be patient.” He chided. “I intend on taking my time with you. Trust me, pretty girl, I’m going to make you feel so good.”

Nodding, you sucked in a sharp breath as the male’s lips found your neck, one hand pressed against the side of your neck to manoeuvre it around however he pleased. Hot, open-mouthed kisses trailed down the side of your neck and up the column of your throat. You swore as Gavriel’s teeth nipped your flesh before his tongue soothed the pain with gentle strokes. Part of you was desperate for him to leave a ring of bruises around your neck, marking you to the world as his, but rationally speaking you both knew that was a bad idea. Your father may be clueless at times, but he would easily piece things together if he saw you covered in hickies – and would likely attempt to end his friend’s life in a fit of rage.

After tasting every inch of your neck, Gavriel lifted his head to meet your eyes. “How are you feeling?”

“So good,” You almost moaned. “More, please.”

He chuckled at your eagerness, but obliged your request. That sinful, corrupting mouth left more of those hot kisses all over your chest, leaving a trail down to your breasts where he paused for a moment.

“Do you have any idea what you do to me?” Gavriel growled, squeezing your breast in one of his hands and making you gasp. “It takes every ounce of self-control I have not to storm over there and ravish you when I see you walking around in that swim top with those perfect tits on display. Got me all hot and bothered, I had to wait until everyone was outside so I could go take a shower and take care of myself. All because of you, little one.”

If you weren’t lying down you were sure you would have collapsed at Gavriel’s confession. The thought of him stroking himself in the shower, naked and thinking of your body…

Before you could finish your thoughts, Gavriel’s head leaned back down and his lips wrapped around your left nipple. You cried out, his name leaving your lips as the male flicked the bud with his tongue. Your other breast was enclosed in his other hand, which was firmly grasping and massaging the flesh with just the right amount of pressure. After a particularly hard suck, Gavriel released your left breast with a lewd pop before switching to the other one.

You moaned, tipping your head back and relishing in the sensation. It was pure sin, you laid out half-naked on your best friend’s father’s bed as the older male buried his face in your chest, bathed in the orange light from the fireplace. You prayed your parents and Aedion would be out for a long night with the rest of the court – you wanted to enjoy Gavriel for as long as possible in this moment.

“So perfect.” He murmured after another few minutes of his sweet torture on your breasts. He kissed your stomach, smirking. “I bet you’re just dripping for me, aren’t you, little one?”

You were in fact, utterly drenched. And Gavriel knew it – he could likely smell it after all, but his words thrilled you nonetheless. But when you didn’t respond, Gavriel’s teeth gently nipped your soft flesh and you yelped.

“I asked you a question, little one.” He growled, hands stroking your sides and gently teasing your hip bones.

Before you could even think of stopping yourself, you moaned out a phrase you thought you’d only ever say in your most sinful dreams, “Yes, daddy!”

Gavriel paused, and the realisation of what you had said just hit you. Oh gods, you just called your best friend’s father ‘daddy’, it was so fucking wrong. Mortification overcame you, and you blurted out apologies.

“I’m so sorry,” You said. “I swear I didn’t-”

“Hush,” Gavriel’s voice was soft yet stern. “You did nothing wrong, little one. Let it out, let Daddy know how good he’s making you feel.”

Reeling, you let out a breath. Only in your wildest dreams did you ever think you could live out this fantasy, letting a male centuries older than you dominate you and call him daddy. You couldn’t help but squeeze your legs together.

The movement did not go unnoticed by Gavriel. Grinning like a feral cat, the golden-haired male gripped your hips and slid his fingers below the waistband of your pants.

“Are you going to be a good girl for daddy?” He questioned, ever so slightly pulling down on the fabric.

“Yes.” You moaned.

“Then lift your hips for me.”

You did so, allowing Gavriel to peel both your pants and panties down your legs. He did so slowly, tawny eyes locked on yours as the fabric was removed from your body. He gently tossed them on the floor next to the bed. You were left completely bare for him, squirming as Gavriel’s gaze shamelessly wandered down your body and settled on the apex between your thighs.

You had never felt so vulnerable, left on display for a male who has been around for centuries bedding gorgeous women all over the country. You weren’t one for self-pity, but part of you was insecure that you could never compare to them. And yet Gavriel looked at you like you were the most alluring female in the world, chest rising up and down with desire as he stared down at your naked form.

“Look at you, all dripping and ready for me.” His voice was velvet and silk, laced with a desire that sent even more wetness to your core. “So fucking perfect, laid out for me like a goddess at the altar to be worshipped. I cannot wait to taste you.”

“You’re too dressed.” You complained.

“We shall remedy that, then.” Gavriel smirked before sitting up fully. He grabbed the bottom of his shirt and effortlessly peeled it off, tossing it to the side. His grin was of pure male pride as you salivated over his sculpted, tattooed chest. Sure you had seen him shirtless before, but up close in the glow of the fire light was entirely different. His golden hair framed his face artfully, coming down just below his shoulders. He looked like a god, power and prowess personified in front of your very eyes.

Large hands found your thighs and grasped them before dragging your body down towards the edge of the bed. You gasped at how easily he did it, as if you weighed absolutely nothing to him – which was probably true. Before you could process what was happening, Gavriel dropped to his knees on the floor in front of the bed and pried your legs open. He lifted one of them up and pressed heated kisses up along the inside of your thigh, causing you to gasp. You were practically aching with need at this point, his kisses getting so close to your core before switching to the other leg and repeating the process.

You whimpered, wriggling your hips in the hopes Gavriel would do something.

“So eager,” Gavriel murmured, placing your legs back down. “It’s ok, Daddy will give you what you need so desperately, do not worry.”

You expected him to shove two of those large fingers into you, as Aelin had quite graphically, and drunkenly, described Rowan doing to her several times. You tensed up in preparation for the foreign intrusion, but it did not come. Instead, Gavriel leaned forward and buried his face between your legs, licking a bold stripe up your pussy.

“Holy fuck.” You breathed. The new sensation had you reeling like a hurricane, sparks of pleasure igniting from your core as Gavriel skillfully stroked and lapped at your juices. You had no idea your body was capable of feeling this way – it was almost overwhelming, between his mouth and the firm grip he kept on your hips.

You could tell he was holding back a bit, that he wanted to simply ravish you but did not desire to overwhelm you completely. Whimpering as Gavriel’s lips found your clit and sucked, your hands shot to his golden hair instinctively.

“That’s a good girl,” Gavriel purred against your pussy, sending vibrations straight into your core. “Pull on Daddy’s hair.”

You obliged, digging your fingers into the locks and tugging as he dove back into your thighs. The male growled as you pulled like he asked, clearly enjoying himself. Your moans echoed throughout the room like a symphony mixed with the crackling of the fireplace and the lewd sound of Gavriel’s lips against your core. Your sounds seemed to have spurred him on even more, for his grip tightened and his efforts doubled. It wasn’t long before your legs began to shake as an unfamiliar coiling sensation built in your core.

“Oh, gods,” You murmured shakily.

“That’s it, baby girl.” Gavriel moaned back. “You’re so close. You can feel it, can’t you? Let go, sweetheart. Let daddy see you come for him.”

As the older male sucked your clit and lightly grazed the bud with his teeth, your world shattered and waves of pleasure crashed over you. Your vision went black as you cried out his name, hips rocking into his grip as you rode out your high. Gasping, your body shook at this newfound sensation as Gavriel coaxed you through it.

After a minute or so you finally recover, regaining your focus as Gavriel lazily stroked patterns along your hip.

“You look utterly beautiful when you fall apart, little one.” He murmured. “How do you feel?”

“I-” You can’t even form words yet. “Wow.”

Gavriel chuckled, spreading your legs further apart. “We’ve only just begun.”

You tried to sit up and reach for the older male, wanting to return the favour. But your arm was gently swatted away.

“No, darling.” He said softly. “Tonight is all about you.”

“But what about you?” You protested, confused. Lysandra had always complained that males were so adamant about receiving after giving, you just assumed that your next move would be to finally take Gavriel in your mouth.

“As much as I love the thought of you on your knees before me with those pretty eyes looking up at me as you choke on my cock, this is your night and your night alone. We have all the time in the world later on for me to teach you all of the things I like and how I like them, little one.”

The thought of Gavriel teaching you how to suck his cock, how to ride him and make him fall apart almost had you on your knees begging to taste him. But you knew better than to protest, still curious to see what he had in store. So you nodded and settled back down, allowing Gavriel to resume his position between your legs.

A large hand moved from your hip to your cunt, gently swiping through your folds and collecting the wetness there. “I want you to tell me if you experience any pain.” Gavriel said sternly. “I will be gentle, and the stretch of multiple fingers may be uncomfortable at first, but if I am going to be inside you tonight I will need to prepare you properly.”

“Yes, daddy.” You replied keenly.

Gavriel’s voice was unnervingly like a purr. “You learn so quickly, little one.” Pride filled his voice, causing you to blush.

Gently, one of Gavriel’s large fingers pushed its way inside of you. You gasped at the intrusion, your body automatically tensing up – it didn’t hurt, but it certainly felt strange, and very different from your own fingers.

“Just relax, and take a deep breath.” Gavriel said patiently. “It will be easier when your body relaxes, but it’s perfectly natural to be tense at first.”

You let the soothing baritone voice wash over you like a blanket, allowing your muscles to relax as your cunt adjusted to the large finger inside of it. You moaned as he crooked the finger, brushing up against a spot deep inside of you that made your head spin.

“Right there, that’s the spot isn’t it?” Gavriel said, retracting his finger ever so slightly before pushing it back in and crooking it again. “I can feel the way your legs shake when I do this. You’re so responsive to me, a perfect little thing just begging to be ruined.”

You weren’t coherent enough to form a response. Gods, if you’re reacting this way to just one of Gavriel’s fingers, how will you fare when he puts his cock inside of you?

Murmuring gentle praises, Gavriel continued this motion with his finger, retracting it more and more with every stroke. He was not fast nor rough, but assertive nonetheless. You could tell he’s extremely experienced, knowing just what to do to get your body shaking.

After a few minutes, you began to feel much more relaxed. Your cunt was dripping, aching for more. But before you could voice this, Gavriel gently slid a second finger inside of you very slowly. You hissed slightly, the sensation burning with the addition of the second finger.

“Fuck, you’re tight,” He breathed, kissing the inside of your thigh. “You’ll get used to Daddy’s fingers, just relax again.”

You inhaled and exhaled as smoothly as you could, trying to force your body to relax like he said. After a few minutes of gentle movements, the discomfort faded and morphed into pleasure. It was a different sensation than from when Gavriel’s mouth was devouring you – one that was more intense and primal. He crooked those fingers again, and you swore as the pleasure was double what it was with one finger.

“There we go,” Gavriel praised you as you arched your back. “Doesn’t that feel good?”

“Yes, Daddy,” You moaned. “Fuck.”

Eventually, the two large fingers inside of you sped up their motions, reaching places inside of you that your own fingers never could. He then attached his lips to your clit again and sucked, flicking it with his tongue. You quickly reached that familiar coiling sensation, and before you knew it you were crashing over the edge once again with your second orgasm.

You laid there panting as Gavriel slowly retracted his fingers from you. You watched in awe as he brought them to his mouth and sucked, moaning. It was without a doubt the hottest thing you’d ever seen in your life.

“You’ve been doing so good for me, little one.” Gavriel praised, leaning over your body to kiss your cheek. “We can stop here if you want. There is no pressure to take this any further. I will gladly accept however much you are ready to give me, and if you want to leave it at this for now we can do that.”

“Please, no.” You practically begged. “I want you to fuck me. Please, Daddy, I’ve been dreaming about it for so long. Please, please I need to feel you inside me.”

Your own words caught you by surprise. You refused to beg for anything in your life, anything except for this apparently. You already had two mind blowing orgasms, but you were already addicted to his touch.

More. You wanted more.

Luckily for you, your begging seemed to have weakened Gavriel’s resolve. He stood up, his large frame towering over your trembling one as his tawny eyes glowed with desire.

“If that is what you truly wish, if you truly want me to be the first male to fuck you with his cock, then I am happy to oblige.” With that, Gavriel’s tattooed hand dropped to the buckle on his pants and undid it in one motion.

You practically salivated as he gracefully pulled down his pants and undergarments, revealing the part you had wanted to see for so long. His cock stood proudly, so massive you weren’t sure if it would actually fit inside of you. The tip was red and wet with precum, a tribute to the effect that pleasuring you had on the mighty fae male – and your chest swelled with pride at the realisation.

“This will hurt at first,” Gavriel warned, cutting off your admiration of his lower half as he crawled over your body. “But you just need to take deep breaths. I will try and make it as painless as possible, but it shouldn’t be agonising. Your body will adjust, I promise.”

You nodded, slightly nervous. You knew he wouldn’t hurt you, but gods the sheer size of him made it question if it was even possible to make this work.

Gavriel rested his elbow beside you, letting his arm cradle your head and pressing his forehead against yours as he gripped his cock in his free hand. After collecting more of your wetness, the male pushed the tip of his cock inside of you.

You tensed up, the burning sensation you had felt with his two fingers a hundred times more intense now. Tears pricked the corners of your eyes, and you felt ashamed, not wanting to let Gavriel down.

“It’s ok, little one,” Gavriel murmured, kissing your tears away. “You’re doing great. Let your body adjust and relax, just focus on me.”

You stared into those tawny eyes that had been there by your side for the past two years. Even though you were very sexually attracted to him from the start, you always appreciated that kindness and tenderness that Gavriel’s eyes reflected. He was always there as a shoulder to cry on, a helping hand, a sturdy presence in your life – despite the sinfulness of the desires the two of you were acting on tonight, you knew that he respected you and you respected him, that his supporting presence in your life was not just because he was attracted to you, but because he genuinely cared for you.

Part of you felt guilty that your best friend’s father was currently inside of you, naked and on top of your equally as bare body. You knew that it was morally questionable, letting such an older male who had close relations to your friends corrupt you like this. But deep down you knew that he did not think any less of you for it, and the thought comforted you enough that your body finally began to relax.

Noticing, Gavriel pressed a kiss to your lips as he pushed his hips forward, edging his thick cock into you even more. It still burned a bit, but much less so. Like with his fingers, Gavriel retracted slowly before pushing in again, a bit further this time. He repeated the process until he eventually was all the way inside of you. Once there, he stilled, kissing every inch of your skin and murmuring praises.

You sighed and looped your arms around his muscled neck, the discomfort evolving into pleasure that was almost animalistic – it was so intense, especially when you looked down and could see a visible bulge in your stomach from the size of the male’s cock. You wriggled your hips in an attempt to encourage him to move.

“Are you sure?” Gavriel questioned.

You stared at his face and realised how much he was holding back. Those thick muscles were practically trembling with restraint, no doubt having to ignore his primal fae male desires to pound into you. His hair was dishevelled, and a thin layer of sweat coated his face.

“I need you to move, please Daddy.” You whined. “I asked you to fuck me, so fuck me.”

Gavriel’s eyes sharpened, indicating that this was the only time he’d let that demanding tone slide. Before you could complain again, he brought his hips back and pushed them forward forcefully, causing you to gasp.

“Is that better, princess?” Gavriel mocked lightly as you eyes rolled back into your head.

“Please keep going!” You mewled, clinging onto his muscular form as the pleasurable sensations threatened to overwhelm you. And your best friend’s father obliged, and each snap of his hips grew more forceful. Within a minute or so the male had set a sturdy pace, pounding in and out of you. The hand that cradled your head now gripped your hair, forcing your gaze to remain on Gavriel.

“Look at you, pretty girl,” His voice was pure filth, the gentle coaxing tone from earlier almost entirely gone and replaced with something more primal. “So small underneath me, a sweet little thing just begging to be fucked and utterly ruined. I told you Daddy was going to take good care of you. And you listened like the good little girl you are, isn’t that right? No other male can male you feel this way, can he? Only daddy.”

You bit down into his shoulder to muffle your pathetic moan at Gavriel’s words. However, your action caused him to growl with pleasure, and he began to fuck you harder. At this point, the bed was shaking and you thanked the gods that there was no other cabin or house around for several kilometres.

Gavriel’s rock hard abs brushed against the soft skin of your stomach as he moved in and out of you, sweat mingling as your bodies pressed close together. It was pure bliss, the powerful male on top of you moaning at the feeling of being inside of you. It wasn’t long before you felt that coil again, and Gavriel’s grip on your body tightened.

“Please come inside of me.” You begged.

Keeping his pace, Gavriel flashed you a concerned look. “But–”

“I’m on a tonic anyways,” You cut him off, knowing he was worried about you getting pregnant with his child. “Please, daddy, I just need you to fill me up.”

Gavriel nodded, grunting as he moved a hand to your clit and began rubbing. Your eyes rolled back in your head as you were barely even able to acknowledge your approaching orgasm before it crashed over you. Hips stuttering, Gavriel followed moments later and roared out your name, spilling his hot come inside your cunt.

The sensation almost made you pass out – your entire body was shaking and exhausted from a third orgasm. You and Gavriel panted for a minute before he slowly slid out of you and stood up.

You were confused when he left the room, wondering if you had done something wrong. Oh gods, what if he regretted it?

Luckily for your pathetic inner thoughts, Gavriel returned a few minutes later with a piece of toast, a tall glass of water and a cool towel.

“Drink this.” He ordered, handing you the water.

Still panting, you took the glass from his hand and gulped the water down, not realising how dry your throat was. Gavriel wiped down your thighs, which were coated in a mix of sweat and juices. After a few minutes of silence and finishing off your toast, Gavriel sat next to you and stroked your hair.

“You did so well tonight, little one,” He murmured, pressing a kiss to the side of your face. “Thank you for trusting me.”

You blushed. “No, thank you,” You corrected, and Gavriel raised an eyebrow. “You didn’t laugh me off when I said I hadn’t been with a male before.”

Gavriel frowned. “Why would I have done that?”

“I’m not saying you would have,” You quickly corrected, embarrassed. “It’s just that… the reason I waited was because males my age just expect every female to know what she’s doing and be good at it. I just didn’t want to disappoint anyone I guess.”

Gently, Gavriel cupped your face in his hands and turned it towards him, forcing you to meet his gaze. “You could never disappoint anyone, darling,” He said sternly. “Especially not me. I don’t give a shit if you’ve been with no males or if you’ve been with a hundred. It makes no difference to me.”

You smiled, kissing him gently. “Thank you for teaching me,” Your voice turned mischievous. “But I did also recall you saying there were other things you could show me?”

Gavriel laughed, swooping you up in his arms before you could protest. “And I meant it,” He said, carrying you down the hallway towards you room. “But you are exhausted, and don’t try and deny it. Rest, for now. They will be home soon and it’s best you be back in your own bed.”

He carried you all the way to your room, gently settling you down on the bed and brushing your hair behind your ears.

“But there will be a next time?” You asked sheepishly, unable to help it. You already craved more of him.

“If that is what you wish,” Gavriel smirked. “Then I am happy to show you how pretty you would look on your knees.”

The next morning you opened your eyes and sat up in bed. Your sore shoulder was gone, but the second you went to stand up your legs gave way. Ungracefully, you caught yourself on the bed frame to avoid the thumping noise of your body hitting the floor.

Last night had felt like a dream, but you knew it was real from the soreness in your lower half. Gavriel had been careful to not leave any visible bruises, but you still struggled with walking. Aedion, Lorcan, and Elide got home after you fell asleep last night, and you thanked the gods for that.

Painfully, you made your way down to the kitchen where everyone else, including Gavriel, was already seated.

“Look who’s finally awake!” Aedion exclaimed, pulling out your chair. Freshly cooked breakfast was laid out on the table, and you didn’t realise how hungry you were until you smelled it.

You couldn’t help but hiss in pain as you sat down, cursing the soreness from last night and praying nobody noticed. Unfortunately, your father did.

“What’s wrong with you?” Lorcan demanded. “I thought Gavriel fixed your shoulder.”

You froze, and so did Gavriel for a split second, mug of coffee halfway to his lips. Mentally swearing, you fumbled for an excuse.

“He did,” You said quickly. “But I’m still sore from training in general.”

Lorcan frowned, glaring at Gavriel. “Well why didn’t you fix that then, too?”

“Because I didn’t ask him to.” You snapped, cutting him off.

Luckily, Elide elbowed her husband in the ribs before he could snap back. The rest of breakfast went by without any awkwardness, until your parents and Gavriel left to do the dishes and Aedion took you upstairs.

“Hey, I think my dad has some ointment for sore muscles,” Aedion said. “I’ll go grab it.”

“No no, it’s fine!” You insisted, unsure of if your scent still lingered in Gavriel’s room. “I’ll manage!”

But Aedion was already gone. You cursed the gods, waiting in the hallway until Aedion’s confused voice came from the end of the hall.

“I found the ointment! But why is your shirt in my father’s room?”

728 notes · View notes

icey--stars · 25 days

Note

Omg TELL ME MORE ABOUT BOTH 13 IDEAS RN … please 🥺

first off, i love you. thank you for the excitement XD

okay, the full overview of the idea is to be a sister to aelin or eris. onto the individual things... hehe. just did it in bullet points for my own sanity. (i went overboard, but YOU ASKED! i was having fun XD)

also please nobody steal these ideas without asking 😭 because i really like how unique i made it and i DO want to post it eventually

Aelin's Sister:

first off, she's the older sibling

i actually fully wrote out a timeline for this particular one because i felt like i had to get the ages right and stuff sooo lemme just give you this first off and then go over the points

basically, i named the OC "Aeress" because yes. had to keep the "AE" vibe going.

Aeress is 9 when Aedion is born and 14 when Aelin is born

At the age of 21, however, Aeress basically went missing. She was with her family (mom and dad) in the Whitefang mountains when a tribe attacked.

She was determined to be dead after being missing for an entire month

HOWEVER, the real story is that she was captured.

Here's the actual written version:

“When I was in the White Fang Mountains, just a simple vacation if you remember, sidekick, a wild tribe attacked us. Humans, all of them, but some had ice magic. We defended ourselves and the guards got Mother and Father to safety. However, they didn’t notice me getting grabbed and thrown on the back of a horse, bleeding from my calf that’d been cut.

“They took me, traveling far. I healed myself when I could, but they put me in iron after the leader realized that I was with them. There was no returning me without full blown war, so instead they faked my death. They took me as a war prize and a slave.”

---

“For a year, they kept me in the Ferian Gap, hidden in the tunnels there. They didn’t even notice when I Settled. I was to mine ice for them, and to appease them. It was impossible for me, an untrained idiotic princess, to escape, so I stayed and waited. My chance came soon after when magic fell. I’d been unchained with only iron cuffs on at that moment. I ran in the chaos of the mountains shuddering, to where the witches trained. A mountain in the Omega.”

---

“After that, with magic gone, I was not skilled enough, I felt, to leave the Ferian Gap, and brave Adarlan with the news I spied on from the tribe. I survived off of them for a good six years, unwilling to brave the valleys and predators without my magic and without any skills of survival. I was untrained and very killable at that moment. I did my best with a sword I stole, but… an untrained arm can only do so much. The mining helped slightly, but not enough.

“Anyway, six years later, humans appeared at my little mountain hideout. These were the humans who created and tested out the current wyverns of the witches’. However, I was still a goddamn idiot, so I got captured. I was a prize for the wyverns and they didn’t even know who I was. But they kept me alive, so I lived like that for a little. 3 years or so, which wasn’t that bad.

“The wyverns were useless for a while, but the humans seemed to not think of me like a slave after a little bit. I was a partner, who helped a little to improve them. Though, I never dared with their dark magic.

“When the witches came, I escaped. And got captured again, by a Blueblood coven. I was pissed, but I was given as a prize to Petrah, the Blueblood Heir. Quite a nice female, actually. She wasn’t as bloodthirsty as the rest. She knew who I was based on scent, I think, but she never told anyone.

“I stayed in her room and one day, she decided to teach me to fight. I learned later it was because of a foolish hope beginning in her heart. Of freedom. Then she taught me to ride wyverns, showing me in secret the beauty of a wyvern. One day, during the day of the games where the covens fought for Wing Leader, I tamed my own wyvern. His name is Ryder. Pitch black, small-sized male who was fast. Perfect for what I needed.

“When the Yellowlegs witches went to Morath, I followed. I blended in quite well, actually. I could pretend to be a servant to the witches and a witch to the humans who knew none the better. When they flew for Adarlan, I escaped. I flew for Terrasen.

“From there, I supported the war as a healer,” I finished. “Took some time to build enough courage to see you, but I wanted to make sure I didn’t compromise your position on the throne, little flame. You deserved to rule. More than I ever did. I know a little about your history as an assassin, and I know you knew how to fight. How to lead, when I heard of your court. And I knew Terrasen was in good hands. I can offer you advice for the finer tuned things of ruling, but leadership was never my forte.” ("you" refers to Aelin)

So basically, that's that. that's how I inputted an older sister into the mix

HOWEVER! Aeress is the exact reflection of Aelin in power. She has majority water (like SUPER powerful) and a tiny bit of flame. Barely a candle light.

This is also where I inputted a very cool concept: the reflection of the powers means that if either of them died, they would've known because the little tiny bit of the power (aelin's water, aeress's fire) would go to the other sister. my previous-self explained it better so here:

“I knew, Aelin. I knew you were alive. I knew because of the goddamn magic in our veins. The small bits of our magic that we can barely use… the water piece you have… if it had come to me, I would’ve known.”

“But magic-”

“That feeling transcends magic being gone,” I cut her off. “It is a deep feeling, of something being lost and gained at the same time. It is rare for any fae to feel, but sometimes, when the magic is reflected, it happens.”

however, some cute things I think you'll appreciate are the NICKNAMES!!

Aeress calls Aelin "little flame" BECAUSE AWWW

And she calls Aedion "sidekick" while he calls her "Queen Bee"

And also like Aeress and Rowan actually get along so well

Aeress is kinda like Aedion in that way and saw Rowan as this powerful ancient fae warrior and is very surprised to find him to be quite chill. she's nervous at first and basically is like "Rowan, if you don't want your mate doing this then just tell me... I'll get away right now-"

but Rowan, at the end of what I actually have written (it is not being finished considering it has no plot XD), basically ends up making them siblings. brother-sister bonds!!

Also Ryder is the cutest wyvern of all time- the one that Aeress gets. pitch black, small, but fast and agile as hell. but he's quite literally a teddy bear. he likes cuddling. he's a ferocious beast who cuddles.

anyway let's stop talking about aelin's sister and get onto ERIS'S TWIN!

Eris's Twin Sister:

I wrote the most for this part, but I have the least amount of worldbuilding for it.

basically, it's a secret twin thing.

please note that "Merle" is the Lady of Autumn!!

“When I was young, I was married off to Beron Vanserra. I was soon pregnant with my first child. But what the healers told me only days before the birth was that there… I had twins. Fraternal twins. They didn’t tell me out of fear before then, but I knew right then and there, that I had to save them. Get them out of the Forest House. Both of them, if I could manage.

“Beron wanted the genders, so I told him one. It was a male. When I gave birth, I kept Beron out for a few days while I recovered. Long enough that he was antsy. I… I gave him the male because he’d wanted a son and winnowed the female to an old friend’s barn and left it, content with wards of warmth and a pacifier.”

Basically, that "old friend" is named Martha and raised Seraphine (OC for THIS one XD. nickname = Sera).

BUT... then Eris kills Beron. And the magic doesn't go to him and he goes on a hunt to find it.

Seraphine, however, has found herself bowled over and now with double the amount of power she had previously.

Now, mind you, she's quite ADHD, so she's not super confident, but she's stubborn as fuck.

Eris promises to help her as much as he can because he's ACTUALLY a good bro and doesn't want to make the same mistake with Sera as he did with his brothers.

Eris helps her get settled in, and Sera manages the court basically by signing random shit and having him help her because surprisingly, their goals align. like making the poor less poor

Sera has a lot of the skills required to be a High Lady, like writing, so luckily, she's quite good at what she's doing.

Eventually, because Sera is very forgetful and disorganized, they get an assistant, an older nanny figure who basically helps manage Sera's day so she doesn't get overwhelmed.

BUT! hehehe... Eris and Sera want an alliance with the Night Court.

The NC doesn't want her to die before their meeting, so they send Az to basically secretly protect her.

however... Azris is canon in this universe. Seraphine gets jump scared by Az because Eris basically wants to make sure that she knows the plan. and that plan is to reveal their mate bond at the meal >:)

Honestly, the NC is pretty chill about Seraphine. Sure, she's nervous, but everyone's pretty chill.

Rhys tries to read her mind one time cus he's suspicious, but they move past it. (Sera can shield her mind well) honestly, I wouldn't be surprised if Rhys would be scared in that moment.

Azris revealed... WOOOPEEE.

Anyway, that's basically that besides me quite literally just going off on an Azris spree and writing a wedding/mating bond scene 🤦

I went overboard, but honestly, these might be full-on wips probably never to be posted, but they're so much fun to tell you about.

thank you for the ask my beautiful anon. i love you.

#talk with me #acotar #acotar fanfiction #azriel #acotar fanfic #eris vanserra #eris acotar #azris #mywriting #aelin galathynius #original character

13 notes · View notes

shallyne · 2 months

Text

You're Alive In My Head

A new fic for @throneofglassmicrofics and one of my favorites I think! based on the song Marjorie by Taylor Swift.

Prompt: Memory

Words: 966

TW: pre-canon death, mourning, grief

“Never be so kind, you forget to be clever and never be so clever, you forget to be kind.” Aelin’s mother said. She had heard this alot, from teachers and her father, even Aedion, but when her mother taught her, it was special in a way Aelin couldn’t explain. Maybe it was the way Evalin Galathynius was gentle enough that she didn’t turn away out of spite but strict enough that Aelin had to listen.

Aelin wanted to ask questions but when she opened her mouth no sound came out. Clawing at her throat, she looked at her mom but when she looked up, her mother kneeled in front of her and with a shock Aelin realized she could see the wall behind her mother, through her mother,

“My brave girl,” her mother whispered as she touched Aelins’s cheek, a phantom touch she couldn’t feel, slowly dissolving into thin air. There was nothing Aelin could do to help, she couldn’t even scream for help.. She couldn’t stand up to hug her one last time, she could only watch her mother vanish.

And if I didn't know better

I'd think you were talking to me now

If I didn't know better

I'd think you were still around

What died didn't stay dead

You're alive, you're alive in my head

Aelin awoke startled in an empty bed. It was early morning, the sun just rising. Rowan was probably on one of his early morning trips, not expecting her to wake up this early.Sitting up, she touched her cheek just where her mother had in her dream and it had felt so real that her own hand was shaking. The smell of her mother’s perfume still was embedded in her.

Breathing became difficult and before she could think twice, Aelin grabbed her cloak and a pair of boots and went out. Luckily the palace was still asleep, mostly, and she knew which corridors she had to avoid to meet anyone.

It was quick to leave and grab a horse, leaving unnoticed and as she was riding towards sunrise, she remembered another lesson many years ago.

“Never be so polite, you forget your power and never wield such power, you forget to be polite.” her mother quietly said as Aelin was cuddled against her, munching on a cookie she had stolen from the kitchen.

She looked up at her mother, meeting her eyes, the same shade as hers. “What does that mean?”

Her mother smiled, softly caressing Aelin’s golden mane of hair, “I asked the same thing when I was your age, Fireheart, and no one gave me a satisfying answer. But I’ll have to tell you the same: you will find out when you’re older.”

“I want to know now!”

“I know, Fireheart,” Evalin Galathynius replied, her thumb sliding to her face and caressing Aelin’s cheek. “I know.”

And if I didn't know better,

Aelin reached her destination and she climbed off her horse, binding in on a nearby tree, walking down a little path she had dreaded to walk since she had entered Terrasen after ten years until she reached a gated patch amidst the trees.

“Hello,” she said the graves with a breaking voice, etched on them Evalin Ashryver Galathynius and Rhoe Galathynius.

The wind caressing her as if in response.

I'd think you were listening to me now.

It was the first two hours that Aelin broke down and told them everything that had happened since she woke up that dreadful night in her parents bed. Everything bad and everything good. She cried and got mad and mourned all of the fallen who had fought for a better world once more. She hasn’t told them everything of course because if she had included details she would be here for a week. Although, at this moment it felt like her parents listened and she would have stayed a week if that feeling would’ve stayed but the feeling vanished the more the world woke up around her.

The autumn chill that wakes me up

You loved the amber skies so much

Long limbs and frozen swims

You'd always go past where our feet could touch

Aelin let herself fall on the grass, looking up at the sky. A chill crept up her spine as the autumn cold and her decision to not wear a garderobe appropriate for autumn weather caught up to her, that wouldn’t get her to leave though. Not yet.

Turning her head to the gravestones, she said, “I should have asked you more questions. Both of you. I should have asked you how to do this and…” she swallowed. “I should have asked to write it down or something. I wish I could have kept everything.” a tear rolled down her cheek.”They took everything, everything from you. Every little scrap was taken.”

The wind howled around her, mixing with the singing of the few birds that haven’t traveled south yet.

And if I didn't know better

I'd think you were singing to me now

Aelin stayed like that, silent, for a few more minutes before she stood up groaning and knelt one last time before her parent’s graves. “Next time I’ll bring you stones. I’m sorry, I just had to talk to you.” she whispered, pressing her hands against both gravestones. “I love you so much.”

I know better

But I still feel you all around

Against the cold, Aelin pulled her cloak closer together and walked back to her horse and once settled on the mare, she looked up the pine tree at the green eyed hawk, “Let’s go home, buzzard.” she said hoarsely.

And as she rode back home, her mate was flying above her, guarding her. She didn’t mind, she was actually glad he was there.

That they were together.

#throne of glass #throne of glass microfics #tog #rowaelin #aelin ashryver galathynius #aelin galathynius #aelin ashryver whitethorn galathynius #aelin fireheart #throne of glass fanfiction #throne of glass fan fiction #throne of glass fanfic #throne of glass fic #tog fanfiction #tog fan fiction #tog fanfic #tog fic #taylor swift

12 notes · View notes

morganofthewildfire · 1 year

Text

-------------------------------------------------------------------

The Other Side Of The Fence

-------------------------------------------------------------------

~2k words

CW: mentions of domestic abuse

-------------------------------------------------------------------

The sun was blazing down like it always was, burning Aelin’s skin where she laid in the crunchy brown grass. It was the middle of summer in the middle of fucking nowhere, and while the sun was technically setting soon, it refused to go easily.

She stared up at the puffy white clouds, picture perfect ones just like a damned kid’s drawing. With another drag of her cigarette, she exhaled and ruined those clouds with a hazy stream of gray.

Laying on the hill behind her sorry excuse for a house, clad in just her tiny cut off denim shorts and a faded bra, smoking a cigarette, no one would look at her and think she was going places. But she wasn’t offended, because it was true.

She’d been trapped in this hellhole of a town for the past twenty years of her sorry life. Her mom had tried to pretend it was better than it was, buying shit all the time like they weren’t living in what was practically a trailer, trying to be motherly in an avoidant way. Evalin Galathynius didn’t like to look things in the face; if they were anything less than perfect then she didn’t like to give it too much time to sit in her head and rot. Like Aelin.

Her dad was too busy fucking around with other women to even notice anything was wrong, and her only other relative, her cousin Aedion, was too damn high all the time.

Which was how she’d ended up here: married before she was even able to legally drink.

A clanging noise interrupted her self-pitying solitude, and she tilted her head on the grass to look down the hill. Her neighbor was fixing a gap in the chain link fence that lined his property, shirtless under the baking sun as he grappled with the metal.

Aelin lifted a hand to her eyes to block that sun, unable to stop herself from staring. How was she supposed to, when her neighbor was a godsdamned work of art?

His skin was rough and tanned, with some scars she didn’t feel like she had the right to ask about. His arms and his muscles were mouthwatering, offering more pleasure from just the sight than her husband had in their entire relationship. His hair was a unique shade, almost silvery in the light, and his eyes. His eyes. The dark green of them that reminded her of forests far away from here, or of glittering jewels she would never be able to afford, or of just safety that she’d never known.

He’d only moved in recently, a new member to the cesspool that was this town, and the first time they’d met she’d had the urge to tell him to run away. Because Rowan Whitethorn was too good for this place. He didn’t belong, he unsettled her, and she didn’t know what to do about it.

“How’s the view up there?” His voice rang out, and she had to blink to realize that he was talking to her. They’d hardly spoken, and his voice had the same effect on her every damn time.

At first Aelin thought he was calling her out for staring at him, but he seemed genuine, so she just leaned back down on the grass, taking another drag of her cigarette.

“Beautiful,” she said sarcastically as she stared back up at the clouds. “I don’t know any place prettier than my own backyard.” A rumble of a chuckle made her insides clench in an unfamiliar way, and she closed her eyes to distract herself, only opening them again when she felt him approach.

She snapped them open, watching him warily as he came up to her.

“Mind if I join you?” Rowan asked, running a hand through his short hair, and she just gestured loosely with the cigarette. He took the invitation, sitting down on the grass by her side. Maybe she should be embarrassed that she was only in her bra, but it was a free country, and like she'd said, she was in her own backyard.

If he had a problem with it, he could leave.

Her husband would have a problem with it, but he was still at work, and would undoubtedly stop and pick up a new six pack of beers he’d drain all in one evening before taking his subsequent drunkenness out on her. It was routine at this point.

“What’s the deal with the fence?” Aelin asked after a few minutes of silence, glancing over at him out of the corner of her eye.

Rowan shrugged, and accepted her cigarette when she offered it to him, looking far too sexy when he inhaled and exhaled like a practiced smoker.

“I’m thinking of getting a dog,” he said casually, “you need a good fence for a dog.”

She nodded her head at the logic, an almost wistful smile gracing her face. Not a true smile, she hadn’t had one of those in years, but something close to the sort.

“I always wanted a dog,” she admitted, unsure of why she was saying anything except for the fact that Rowan seemed to draw things out of her that no one else could.

“Why don’t you get one?” He asked, passing back the cigarette. She sighed heavily, staring straight at the sun and relishing in the ache it caused.

“Arobynn hates dogs,” she said, naming her absolutely wonderful husband. Aelin didn’t even try to hide the bruises anymore, it didn’t fucking matter. She’d made the decision, and if she was being honest, she would probably make the same decision again if she needed to. It was just how it was. “He had one when he was a kid and said he’d never do it again.”

“And when was that?” Rowan asked, with a bite of anger in his voice that had her snapping her eyes to him. “Forty godsdamned years ago?”

Ah. He was questioning the age gap. Even if he was exaggerating, he wasn’t far from the truth. Her husband was old enough to be her father; Aelin just wondered why he seemed to care?

No one else ever had, and wasn’t that the crux of every single one of her problems?

Aelin didn’t know if Rowan had ever actually interacted with Arobynn apart from the first time they introduced themselves to their new neighbor. It was always an act, always a puppet show. Maybe they owned one of the nicer houses in one of the nicer areas of town, but it was just as shitty as the rest of it, and the falling apart facade failed to hide the absolutely crumbled pieces inside.

Rowan seemed to harbor some sort of resentment toward him though, something more than could be caused by a couple of months of living next door. She had half a mind to ask him about it, but she didn’t want to have to answer any difficult questions. There were some things that she never spoke aloud, and she hated herself for how much she’d broken over the past few years, but she couldn’t let herself shatter completely. And admitting the truth just might do that.

Aelin shifted uncomfortably, frowning up at the sky instead of looking at him. A few moments passed before she opened her mouth to forcibly change the subject, not wanting to pry into the twisted secrets of her everyday life. But he beat her to it.

“What would you name your dog?” He asked, and she could feel his eyes on her body. Not gawking, he seemed to be more respectful than that. No, if anything he was assessing her, taking stock of every injury that her skin contained, trying to pierce through her skin to see what scars were buried even deeper.

Aelin had never felt more exposed, but strangely, she didn’t shy away.

“Fleetfoot,” she said quietly, her voice piercing the still air. All that was around them was the chirp of crickets, the rattling of an old industrial plant not too far away, the occasional pop that she could never be sure was a car backfiring or a gun taking down another not so innocent life.

The town was riddled with crime, and though Aelin tried to stay out of it, she was sure she’d get pulled in at some point. Everyone did. Her husband was probably involved, though she would never ask. She still valued her miserable life.

“Why Fleetfoot?” Rowan asked politely, his arms braced on his knees where he still so casually sat. She didn’t know what he did for work, but if he wanted her to know he would tell her. She had no desire to disrupt whatever stolen moment in time this was.

“A dog named Fleetfoot would have to be fast,” Aelin explained, uncaring if he would understand or not. “I would want a dog who would run the hell away from here with me.”

Out of the corner of her eye she saw Rowan nod in agreement, and she didn’t like what that did to her. He couldn’t possibly understand. Right?

She turned her head fully to watch him properly, her golden brows furrowed. He looked down at her, meeting her eyes, and her heart squeezed, like it always did when she saw that piercing green. She should look away, Aelin knew she should. She barely knew this man, and he barely knew her.

It didn’t matter how much he fascinated her, it didn’t matter how much she wanted to pry into him and learn all his secrets the way he seemed to want to learn hers. It wasn’t possible, and the attempt would just hurt them both.

But she couldn’t look away.

As if something was pulling her, Aelin sat up slightly, pushing onto her elbows until she was sitting up all the way, putting herself only inches away from a man who was not her husband. Aelin felt no loyalty to Arobynn, how could she? But it would make everything worse if she forgot herself and her situation.

Her breath stuttered as Rowan leaned in infinitesimally, his eyes dropping to her lips. Unconsciously she wet them with her tongue, unfamiliar warmth pooling in her. She’d never felt desire like she felt for him, she’d thought that part of her was broken.

But she wasn’t foolish.

And when the familiar sounds of Arobynn’s car pulling onto the driveway hit her ears, she jerked away in an instant, head turning toward the house. Her heart was racing, fear rushing through her veins. But she forced herself to take a deep breath, squeezing her hands into fists to fight the trembling. It’d been so long, she hated herself for still having this reaction to him.

She glanced at where Rowan was sitting, but he was already gone, back in his yard, toying with the fence like he’d never even left.

Aelin didn’t herself look at him again as she scrambled to a stand, putting out the cigarette in the dirt and heading toward the house. The tiny square footage of space, and the hill, was her whole world at this point. She rarely left. She had nothing to leave for. Her parents didn’t want to see her, her cousin was so out of it that she wasn’t sure he remembered she existed. The only other person she’d cared about was already gone.

But before she stepped through the screen door of the back porch, she chanced a glance over at Rowan’s house, wondering hopelessly what it would be like on his side of the fence.

------

taglist:

@wordsafterhours

@romancinghollywood

@superspiritfestival

@wishfulimaginings

@larisssss

@punkassbookjockey26

@shyvioletcat

@aelinchocolatelover

@s-uppertime

@leiawritesstories

@elentiyawhitethorn

@backtobl4ck

@goddess-aelin

@fromthelibraryofemilyj

@justreadertings

@rowaelinismyotp

@live-the-fangirl-life

@swankii-art-teacher

@tomtenadia

@highqueenofelfhame

@firestarsandseneschals

@thegreyj

@mariamuses

@house-of-galathynius

@rowanaelinn

@llyncooljones

@story-scribbler

@charlizeed

@bookcide

@elizarikaallen

@slytherhys

@booknerdproblems

@earthtolinds

@rowaelinrambling

@courtofjurdan

@peppermint-fae

#rowaelin fanfiction #rowaelin au #rowaelin #throne of glass #throne of glass fanfiction #throne of glass au #the other side of the fence

96 notes · View notes

alice-bad-thoughts · 3 months

Note

Hello! Do you have any headcanons for Aedion's mom? I feel like people rarely talk about her and I was curious to see your thoughts

All right kids. You asked for it yourself.

✨ Her parents died when She was pretty young, so She (as well as her son) lived with Glaston and Evalin and was pretty close to her cousins up until a certain point.

✨ She is nameless. She was, is and will be. I will never dare to name Her, no matter how much I want to (even though I am tempted to write to Maas from time to time at all costs and ask about it. In fact, I don't think it's so impossible). Nevertheless, I think Her has a preternaturally simple but not obvious name beginning with A.

✨ She (like Aedion) is fascinated by parrots.

✨ She loved peaches and pomegranates, as well as their flowers. One day Gavriel found this out and on their last meeting gave Her one. She made a herbarium of it.

✨ She was fascinated by the sea and even had a little water magic. One day She showed it to Gavriel. In response, he only smiled gently and kissed Her palm.

✨ She started the relationship with him as a joke. To make Glaston angry. But something went wrong. She loved him with the purest love in the world.

✨ I also think She was severely depressed.

✨ I have a picture in my mind of how bad She felt after broke up with Gavriel. Maybe one day, when I will be in a really bad mood and want you to suffer, I'll write this. Pray that it doesn't happen, because She probably had suicidal thoughts often. Even when She had Aedion, who became the meaning of life for Her.

✨ Let's talk a little bit about Her before She met Gavriel. She was far more well-bred than Her son and niece and (I have no illusions about the demands placed on her, and I take the British royal family as a benchmark), but she allowed herself to swear and do some mischief. And She got away with it every time.

✨ She never expected to live happily ever after. She always thought that She would marry a nice but rather uninteresting man who would not dare to limit Her in anything, live to be thirty and what would happen after that She could not imagine.

✨ Towards the end of Her life She suffered from paranoia, but for Aedion's sake She tried sincerely not to show it.

✨ She had no regrets about dying. She was sure She had lived a short but good life. After all, She never wanted to be anything other than just a good person who did everything right.

Bonus: I think she looks something like Jennifer Aniston.

#throne of glass #aedion ashryver #gavriel #sjmaas #sjm #big post #BE CAREFUL WITH IT #aelin ashryver galathynius #aelin galathynius

11 notes · View notes

acourtof-stars · 2 years

Text

little baby fireheart

Rowan x Aelin baby headcanons!

Rowan is such an overprotetive mate and husband to aelin when she's pregnant and once their daughter is born, His heart is completly torn in half and will do anything to protect her

FIND ON A03

-over the nine months Aelin is Pregnant Rowan is super protective of her. he does everything for her and at first she hated it and then apreciate it once she could barely see her feet over her belly.

-they decided they were going to name their child after Aelin's parents. evalin for a girl and Rhoe for a boy. This was Rowans idea to honour her parents and their sacrifice and when he told her she broke down crying.

-The nursery is all set up, painted Terrasen Green with White mountains. Rowan Does everything. He spent all morning putting the crib together. he refused any help, saying that it was his job.

-Rowan accidently put the Crib together wrong and it fell apart. laughing Aelin and everyone else helped put the nursery together. Aedion helping Rowan with the crib. Rowan was a little pissed but was glad for the help.

-Lysandra brought so many gifts Aelin felt so spoiled. Her entire nursery was filled with only the best and newest things for the baby. Including a stuffed toy of a ghost leopard she got customly made. To protect their child.

- Rowan likes to Watch Aelin read by the fire, a hand strocking her severaly swollen belly as she sips tea and reads her book. sometimes, he swears he hears her reading to the baby when she thinks she’s alone. every time it melts his heart, knowing how good of a mom she's going to be.

-one night Rowan wakes up to Aelin standing by the window, looking over Her kingdome.. he asks her what's the matter and she confesses that she is beyoned terrified about being a mother. he hugs her and tells her that they will figure it out together and that she'll never have to do it alone.

-Everyone stays at the castle in orynth a week before Aelins due date that way they wont miss it. Everyone is excited, Especially Aedion Who will be an uncle.

-Rowan and Aelin make Aedion and Lysandra the godparents of their child. Aedion cries and says it will be the biggest honour and will protect the child with his life. Lysandra also cries and hugs Aelin before treating her to a spa day

-Aelin keeps doing work even while heavily pregnant. she says that her kingdome won't wait even if their queen is With child. Rowan insists she slows down but stubbornly she waves him off.

-she waddles all around the castle. The pressure on her back made it hard to walk but still she pushed through. Some days she was in so much pain but still she pushed through.

-She never let anyone see her in pain, even Rowan who asked her all the time how she was feeling. Though he could see past all that and see how much pain she was actually in.

-One day During the middle of the night Aelins water breaks everywhere on their bed.

-Rowan is Imedietly awake, running For Yrene. Everyone else comes rushing out of their rooms at the commotion asking if she's alright.

-Yrene examines her and tells her she still has a while to go. Everyone stops in once and awhile and asks how she is. Rowan stayed by her side the entire time.

- later that afternoon Dorian and Aedion offer to sit with Aelin so Rowan could have a break to go eat something and bathe since he'd been by her side since her water had broken early that morning. He refused, snarling at how they would think he'd leave his mate and Queen while in labour. Aelin tells him it’s alright and that he could go since they still had awhile.

-The labour was slow. Aelin had many painful contractions and each time Rowan was by her side, letting her squeeze his hand. he hated seeing her in pain.

-Rowan used his wind to keep her comfortable and each contraction he damped her face with a wet towel. Constantly reminding her how beautiful she was or what an amazing mother she’ll be.

-it was late evening when Yrene had checked over her and informed them it was almost time for Aelin to start pushing. Rowans heart raced as he held his mate and kissed her on the forhead. telling her, he would never, ever leave her side.

-so Aelin pushed and pushed and pushed. Rowan held her hand through the whole thing. he made sure a breeze constantly covered her so at least through the pain she'd be comfortable.

-Aelin never screamed or showed how much pain she was in. she constanly kept a brave face. Rowan admired her for it, holding her tight through each contraction.

-Finally Yrene Yelled at Aelin for one last push. Focusing all her energy, She gave a large push.

-A large wail filled the room. tears streamed down both Rowan and Aelins face as yrene joyously announced “its a girl! You have a daughter”

-Yrene handed the baby to Rowan as she checked over aelin.

-Rowan sobbed as he observed their child. "She's beautiful" He exclaimed. the baby with White hair like his and the Ashryver eyes like her mother. small pointed ears that were smaller than his finger. chubby little hands and toes. He could stare at her forever and never bore.

-Rowan hands Aelin their daughter. she cries over her daughter and welcomes her into the world. Evalin marion Elentiya Whitethorn Galathynius. each part of her name an important part of her mothers life.

-After the birth, Aelin slept while Rowan rocked their child. He held his tiny daughter in his arms as he sung her lullabies and told her stories about his past.

-Rowan has never loved anything this much in his life. His sleeping wife and mate, their gorgeous daughter who resembled the both of them perfectly.

-when Aelin has the strength to see people she let's them come in, a few at a time.

-Aedion Lysandra and Evangeline went first. Each of them Sobbing as they looked at Their godchild. Lysandra laughs and tells Aelin how spoiled their daughter is going to be and how she will never go a day without knowing love or comfort like Aelin and she experienced. Aedion is speechless, a stream of tears falling down his face as he held his niece and goddaughter. Evangeline Gives Evalin a kiss on the forehead before leaving.

-Next was Elide and Lorcan. Lorcan mainly kept to the back of the room as Elide hogged Evalin, crying when she heard that her middle name was named after her mother. She thanked Them both and Confessed that her mother would have loved to be here, along with Evalin and rhoe. Aelin thanked Elide for everything. She has done. Lorcan clasped Rowan on the back congratulating him.

-Dorian and Manon brough gifts for the baby. A Red and Gold baby blanket. a symbol that their child will always have a place in Adarlan. And Manon gave a beautiful dagger… “just for decoration” Aelin laughed. When they left Aelin swore she heard Dorian stifle his tears.

-chaol and Yrene were last. Yrene gave the babe a full check to make sure she was healthy. Chaol congratulated both of them, a large smile across his face. he told Aelin how glad he was to meet her. he also informed them that he passed the news to nesryn and Sartaq who were away on their honeymoon.

-after all that, finally they had time to themselves. to love and adore and drool over their newborn baby. Evalin.

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

-A year later Evalin is just like her mother. already walking she has her mother's spirit and determintion. She has Rowans lethal calm. when upset she never goes into tantrums but staring at her parents like she wants to murder them.

- her entire family spoils her rotten. She knows that if her mummy and daddy said No, she’s simply go to uncle Aedion and Aunt Lysandra.

-they would sometimes visit Adarlan. Eva loves running around, and playing with her uncle Dorian. The guards all protect her, making sure nothing happens.

-she loves music and some nights the only way she can sleep is if her father sits with her while her mother plays the piano forté. Rowan would stroke her hair as Aelin played beautiful songs.

-her Auntie Lysandra loves dressing her up. she has a special seamstress just for eva, who makes all her gowns custome for her. Like Her mother, Eva loved pretty things. Her auntie spoils her rotten, sometimes too much.

-Her mother still sings her old terrasen lullabies even when she grows older and insists she is to old for songs. But still it never stopped her from falling asleep soundly.

-Evalin inherited Aelins passion for books. For her birthday Her uncle Dorian gifted her so many books that Rowan and Aelin built her,her own small library where she could go and read.

-she also inherited Rowan’s wind power. The first time her power showed she was so scared but Rowan was smiling, his heart secretly breaking as her daughter trembled.

-It has happened in the library, her wind flew all the books off the shelves. It’s scared her because she thought she’d get in trouble. He tells her that she would never get in trouble and teaches her how to use her magic appropriately.

-when Evalin grows old enough she helps people in orynth. her Aunt Yrene teachers her about healing and her parents teach her about her duties as princess of terrasen. they never stifle her or tell her she can't, only that she can.

-she cares about her kingdome deeply and everyone in Terrasen adors princess Evalin marion Elentiya Whitethorn Galathynius daughter of the queen and king of terrasen

#rowan whitethorn #aelin ashryver galathynius #rowan x aelin #lysaedion #throne of glass #aedion x lysandra #dorian x manon #elide x lorcan #chaol x yrene #evalin ashryver

70 notes · View notes

mariaofdoranelle · 9 months

Text

‘Til the Bone Crush

Rowaelin Month masterlist

@rowaelinscourt

I didn’t have anything planned for today, but I was flooded with memories from high school this week… and let’s say this is based on a true rumor 🤣

Words: 1,1k

Warnings: horny teenagers but SFW, physical injury

“Are you sure?” Rowan whispered, sat in Aelin’s bed while he held her face.

“Yes.” Aelin’s tone left no room for argument. “Take your clothes off.”

She could see his frown even from behind his shirt, when he was lifting it off. “Because I’m not in a hurry, okay?

“Yes, you are!” Aelin argued, both hands on her hips as she stared at him down.

Rowan’s cheeks flushed, and he said, “I’m excited to do it, doesn’t mean I’m in a hurry.”

He stared down his shirt, folding it, and Aelin’s chest warmed as she wondered if anyone else in the world folded their clothes before having sex—she wouldn’t know, since it was her first time and she didn’t plan on ever doing it with someone else.

Three days ago, her mom left for a work trip in Perranth. Now it was Friday afternoon, and her dad had just left their apartment to join her there for a romantic weekend. Uncle Gavriel and Aedion still promised to keep an eye on Aelin because her parents didn’t need to be present to be strict, but not tonight.

They’d been together for six months already. Six months of longing for something more than interrupted making out sessions, being scolded at school, and Rowan saying he didn’t want them to lose their virginities in a party.

Since her parents were too lame to let her live her life and Rowan’s parents—who were actually cool—said they wouldn’t do anything behind Aelin’s parents’ backs, this was their first opportunity to take that next step.

“I love you.” Aelin gave him a small, shaky smile before a quick kiss. “And I’m ready to do it now, but only if you are too.”

“Love you too.” Rowan’s tone was as sweet as his kiss, before a playful smirk took over his mouth. “And I’ll be ready as soon as you get rid of Jungkook.”

“What!?” Aelin’s tone was high-pitched, and she took a sharp turn to face her BTS poster. “He won’t ask to join, if that’s what you’re worried.”

Rowan laughed, the sound of it almost making Aelin swoon, and took her face with both hands.

“I love you,” he said before deepening the kiss. Her head was spinning as he massaged her tongue with his own, filling the bottom of her stomach with butterflies as they slowly lowered their bodies on the bed.

“I love you,” Rowan whispered against her ear, lowering his mouth to trail kisses down her neck. Aelin was breathless, running her hands against his chest, stomach and shoulders. Something about her caresses and eager responses made him confident enough to sneak a hand under her shirt.

“I love—“

Rowan’s ministrations were brutally interrupted by the sound of the front door being unlocked.

They stopped frozen like statues, widened eyes staring at each other’s, so still Rowan didn’t even take his hand off her covered boob.

“Uncle Gav!?” Aelin yelled, calling for whoever the intruder was. Her heartbeat was plummeting with dread, her breath almost nonexistent by now.

“Fireheart, I’m home!” her dad shouted, his familiar voice echoing through the house. “I forgot my laptop here, can you believe it? But I’ll get on the other train.”

Shit, shit, shit. Rowan jumped out of her bed, and cursed when he saw all the under bed drawers, leaving no space for him to hide. Then he ran towards her wardrobe, but had no luck either.

“You really think I have any space there with all the online shopping I do?” Aelin whisper-yelled, her heart almost beating out of her throat.

Three knocks on her door. “Fireheart?”

Rowan ran towards her window, sticking his head out. “There’s a ledge,” he whispered.

“What? No!” Aelin pulled his arm. “We can confess everything. You can’t die a virgin, Rowan!”

More knocks on her door. “Aelin? Are you talking on the phone?”

“Shh!” Rowan glared, his cheeks red. “It’s just the second floor. Talk to your dad and I’ll come back.”

He quickly put one leg out the window, then another, staying upright with the ledge supporting half of his feet. He stumbled to the side a little, but Aelin closed the left half of her curtain so Rowan wouldn’t have to move further outside her building.

With shaky limbs and almost unable to breathe, she unlocked her bedroom door. “Hey, Dad.”

“Hey, Fireheart.” Rhoe kissed her forehead. “Did you hear what I said?”

“You forgot your laptop.” She gave him a weak smile, unable to forget about her boyfriend hiding like freaking Spider-Man on the outer part of her building’s wall.

”’Kay, I’m calling an uber again now.” A pause. “Were you talking to Rowan on the phone?”

“Yeah.” Her throat was so tight it was hard to get the words out.

“Send him ‘hi’ for me, will ya?” Rhoe said while walking away, then took a sharp, dramatic turn her way. “And tell that boyfriend of yours I’m keeping an eye on him.”

“Oh my God, Dad,” she shrieked, “you are so annoying!”

Aelin heard Rhoe’s cackles down the apartment even after she closed the door.

She hurried to open her curtain, and Rowan was still there, hanging by a thread.

He braced himself with both hands on the window’s rail, but when he lifted one of his legs to get back to her bedroom, the foot on the small ledge lost its balance. Aelin gripped his arm, her pulse too fast, but it was too late. Rowan stumbled over, falling from her second-story window.

Aelin’s ear-shattering scream of terror was almost as loud as Rowan’s own of pain. A bone-crushing weight pressed against her chest, and she watched his body on the floor with a crawling sensation on her skin.

Rowan was lying on the ground, yelling every curse known to mankind. His upper body was visibly injured, but not as much as his legs. They were bent at odd angles, his pants torn and bloodied. Aelin had never seen an exposed fracture before, but that thing sticking out of his lower limbs looked a lot like bone.

Aelin was dizzy and her limbs were shaking, but she grabbed her phone to call an ambulance and shouted from her window that she was coming down to wait for it with him.

When she turned to leave, her door burst open. Her dad ran towards the window, and paled when he saw what happened. Rhoe took a step back, eyes widened before he regained his movements.

He shouted some reassurance to Rowan and ran towards him, but not without yelling on his way out, “Aelin Galathynius, you are in so much trouble!”

You can get notified when I update by either turning notifications on for @backtobl4ck-fics or entering my (sometimes glitchy) tag list!!

TAG LIST

I couldn’t tag the people in bold, sorry!

@aelinchocolatelover

@autumnbabylon

@bookcide

@booksandteaonarainydayislife

@cookiemonsterwholovesbooks

@courtofjurdan

@dreamer-133

@elentiyawhitethorn

@elizarikaallen

@emily-gsh

@empress-ofbloodshed

@fangirlprincess09

@goddess-aelin

@gracie-rosee

@leiawritesstories

@lululululululuop

@renxzs

@rowanaelinn

@s-uppertime

@sarahjswift

@staghorn-mountains

@superspiritfestival

@swankii-art-teacher

@thegreyj

@violet-mermaid7

@wishfulimaginings

#rowaelin #rowan whitethorn #aelin galathynius #rowaelin month #throne of glass #rowaelin fanfiction #rowan x aelin #aelin x rowan #rowaelin fanfic #throne of glass fanfic

67 notes · View notes

leiawritesstories · 2 years

Note

Now that you did a rowaelin dealing with teenagers story, do one on lysaedion!!

it would be my pleasure 😁

word count: 3.1k (oopsies)

warnings: language, exhausted parents, references to sex, emotions

enjoy!!

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

"Babe?" Aedion leaned against the kitchen doorway, watching his wife finish stacking the last plates into the cupboard. After almost twenty-four years together, he knew what Lysandra did and didn't like to do.

And he knew she only organized the kitchen when she was stressed.

"Hey, babe, it's okay," he repeated, meeting her tired emerald gaze.

Lysandra sighed heavily, flicking off the light as she came to wrap her arms around her husband, pressing herself into his warmth. "I don't know how to handle this," she admitted. "It--I guess it just doesn't seem real, Aeds, no matter how long we've had to get used to the idea."

"We'll never get used to the idea of our oldest leaving for college," Aedion said softly, stroking Lys's back in soothing motions. "Shit, it feels like just yesterday we brought him home."

She nodded, sniffling quietly against his shoulder. "Yeah, it does. Gods, babe, it's like I blinked and our tiny little boy turned into a man."

"Man-child," Aedion corrected rapidly, his lips quirking.

Lysandra snorted quietly. "So insistent that our son never grow up."

"Hey," Aedion smirked, "you called me an overgrown child for gods know how long."

"Still do," she smirked right back. "I've got my reasons."

He chuckled. "Come on, babe, it's really fuckin' late and we have to leave at the ass-crack of dawn."

"Remind me again who planned it that way?" she crooned.

He grumbled something under his breath as he led her down the hall, turning off the lights as he went. Lys let him go into their bedroom; she stopped at their son's door and tapped softly.

"Awake?"

Emerson cracked the door open, blinking sleepily. "I was about to be asleep, Mom."

"Sorry," she whispered, her gaze darting into his room, over the suitcases and boxes neatly stacked on one side.

Her son sighed, the exhale turning to a yawn. "I'm ready for tomorrow, Mom, I promise."

"I know," she said. "I...I just wanted to say goodnight, Emerson."

His lips tilted up into a sleepy little grin and, albeit a little awkwardly, he wrapped his mother into an affectionate hug. "G'night, Mom."

"Goodnight, my boy." Lysandra reached up to smooth down his dark hair. "Gods, I'll never be quite used to you being taller than me."

Emerson chuckled. "Don't worry, I know better than to try and look down at you."

"Damn right you do." She pinched his cheek, smirking at his disgruntled grumble, and let him go. "Sleep well, son."

Lysandra tasked herself with waking up the children in the morning, knowing Emerson and Sana had both set alarms but might need a little nudge and the promise of caffeine to get them up and going at so early in the morning. So she headed into the kitchen and started up a fresh pot of coffee after getting herself ready, then went to Emerson's room.

"Rise and shine, kiddo!" She stuck her head into his room, noting with pleased surprise that his lamp was on and he was awake, if not yet out of bed.

"So early," he grumbled, smashing his pillow over his head.

"Blame your father," she retorted, "this was his grand idea."

"Fine," he conceded. Then he sniffed, his nose for caffeine overpowering his longing to sleep a few more minutes. "Coffee?"

"Freshly brewed," she laughed. "Better get there before the rest of us do, though." She withdrew and moved down to the next door, taking a quick breath in preparation for dealing with her daughter.

No light showed beneath Sana's door, so Lysandra wasn't surprised to see that her daughter's room was still dark. "Morning, Sana," she said, poking her head into the room, her eyes adjusting to the dimness and finding--

"Shit!" Sana squeaked, her bedcovers rustling as she reached to her side and shook the person next to her. "Uh, hi, Mom!"

"Shit!" yelped a boy's voice, the offending intruder rapidly burying himself under Sana's comforter.

"SHIT!" Lysandra exclaimed, rapidly yanking herself out of the room and rubbing her eyes as if to cleanse the image she had very much not wanted to see at five in the morning. Pulling her phone from her back pocket, she fired off a quick text to her daughter.

>Don't even think about letting him go through your window. I'll keep Dad away.

A few minutes later, a very sheepish Sana cracked open her door. "Uh...good morning, Mom?"

"Good morning," Lysandra replied calmly, the steel in her expression belying her even speech. "Good morning to you too, Owen."

Owen, Sana's boyfriend, waved awkwardly. "Hi, Mrs. Ashryver."

Because she was a woman of her word, Lys quickly checked the hallway and then motioned her daughter and Owen to follow her out to the patio door. No doubt Owen had either come in that way or snuck through Sana's window or she'd simply brought him over when Lys and Aedion were out finishing a last-minute errand. Aedion was sufficiently occupied for now, probably in the shower from the sound of it, so she waved the two of them out. "We'll see you later, Owen."

Sans kissed her boyfriend goodbye and came back into the house, her cheeks flaming. "Um..."

"Honey." Lysandra calmly handed her daughter some coffee. "Don't worry about it."

"That scared the shit out of me," Sana mumbled, her blush barely fading.

Lys smirked. "We'll be discussing this, but since your father didn't see, I don't think he needs to have any more reasons for his blood pressure to go up, hmm?"

Her daughter loosed a huge, relieved sigh. "Oh, thank all the gods."

"I wouldn't thank the gods yet," Lys said dryly, sipping from her own coffee. "Go on and help lug all Emerson's shit out to the car, Dad wants us to leave in twenty minutes."

"As if that's gonna happen," Sana snickered. She snapped the lid onto her travel mug and headed out of the kitchen, pausing and whirling back around to give her mother a quick, fierce hug. "Thank you, Mom."

"Love you, honey," Lys murmured. She winked. "Hell, I was a slightly wild teenager once, too..."

"Stop it!" Sana squeaked, making a hasty retreat.

Lysandra snickered, knowing full well how well hinting at her and Aedion's...past affected the kids. Making sure all the dishes were in the dishwasher and the coffee pot and toaster had been unplugged, she set her coffee mug down on the counter and grabbed the small box of kitchen stuff Emerson wanted for his dorm. Since he was a freshman, he was required to live in the dorms, and he grumbled about it but she knew that he'd at least be able to enjoy some of the experience. And since he knew how to use a stove and oven, she had no doubt that he'd be the most popular guy in the hall.

"Mom!" Emerson called as soon as she walked out to Aedion's truck, carrying the box. "Thank god, we need you!"

"What now?" she sighed, pretending to be exasperated.

"Son of a bitch!" Aedion yelled from the truck bed, muffling a string of even filthier words.

Emerson took the box from Lys and rolled his eyes. "That's what."

"Babe," she sighed, hopping up next to her husband, "what the hell is going on?"

"Dropped a box on my foot," Aedion mumbled, hiding his embarrassed flush from his wife.

She sighed and made him sit down, prodding his foot to make sure he wasn't badly injured. "How'd that happen?"

"I, uh--stacking too many things," he admitted.

"Fascinating," she deadpanned.

He grumbled something about stop being right. "I know, babe, I know. I shouldn't be doing this at my age."

"Took the words right out of my mouth," she snickered. "Come on, babe, there's only a few more things and it'll all fit with plenty of room, you don't need to worry about space."

Aedion hefted a sigh himself and kissed the top of her head. "Gods, why are you always right?"

"It's my job," she grinned.

He chuckled and kissed her softly, one hand coincidentally dropping down to her ass.

"Oh my fu--god!" Emerson groaned, almost dropping the box he carried as he screwed his eyes shut, not having needed to see his parents being horny teenagers in the back of the pickup.

"Truck's seen worse, my boy," Aedion snickered gleefully, relishing in the way his son grew visibly uncomfortable. "How much left?"

"Ju--uhh--just this box and your suitcases." Emerson ran back into the house as fast as he could, blinking rapidly as if to scrub away the image to which he'd just been treated.

Both Lysandra and Aedion burst into laughter at his discomfort, finding a small way to cope with the crazy emotions of bringing their firstborn to college.

Seven hours of driving and only a few friendly family disagreements later, Aedion pulled into the parking lot of their hotel, turned off the ignition, and released a deep sigh of relief along with the rest of the family. Emerson had enrolled in Adarlan State University, which wasn't as far from home as he could have gone, but was far enough away for him to feel independent. Instead of flying, they'd opted to make the drive to move him in, taking a few days' vacation of sorts.

Aedion hopped out and went into the hotel to check in, returning shortly later with the room keycards and the printouts. "All right, we're good to go."

"Thank god," Sana grumbled, wasting absolutely no time getting out of the car and stretching herself out. "Is it just me, or does Rifthold air smell different?"

"It definitely does," Emerson agreed, jumping out from his side. "Less mountain-y."

"That's not a word," Sana scoffed, grinning wickedly.

Her brother rolled his eyes. "Thought we were out of school, Little Miss Grammar."

"Call me that one more time--"

"Nope!" Lysandra stopped her children before they could start. "Please, we just got here!"

"Sorry, Mom," both of them mumbled, slightly abashed.

She huffed. "I know you want to be free, son, but please at least try to pretend your father and I taught you something resembling manners."

"Okay," he agreed, going to grab the suitcases.

Sana grabbed her backpack out of the truck and pushed the door shut, taking her suitcase from her brother. "Thanks, Mer."

"No problem, young one."

She poked him in the back of the neck. "I'm sixteen, jackass."

"And I'm an adult," he smirked.

"Okay, Emmy," she retorted, snickering at his frustrated snarl.

"Kids," Aedion called lazily, watching the two bicker like they always had, "how about we haul our shit up to the room and get dinner?"

That, apparently, was the magic word.

Half an hour later, they'd dropped off luggage in their third-floor room, each taken a turn in the bathroom, and were back in the truck with Lysandra scrolling through the list of nearby restaurants on her phone. "Do we want burgers or Thai?"

They wanted burgers, apparently.

Though that may just have been the vocal eagerness of the two man-children in the car.

The next day, Lysandra awoke with a small heaviness in the pit of her stomach, a feeling that only built as they drove into Adarlan State University's campus, greeted by a whole host of students dressed in red and white and black, the school's colors, waving "WELCOME!!!" signs and cheering for the new freshmen. On the flip side of the overabundance of school spirit, though, there were lots of signs directing the students and families where to go, and they found Emerson's dorm building easily.

Getting his stuff into his dorm turned out to be a lot less easy.

"Goddamn move-in crowds," Aedion grumbled, his forehead damp with sweat as he set two more boxes down on the dorm floor.

With so many people moving in at once, the elevators were constantly busy and constantly had a waiting line, so the Ashryvers had opted to take the stairs and cycle from the car up to Emerson's dorm and back.

Too bad Emerson's dorm was on the fourth floor.

Aedion didn't know the last time he'd walked so many stairs, let alone walked stairs while hauling boxes and luggage.

"That's it!" Emerson grunted, plopping the last box onto the ground and huffing. "Hell, I think I just got in my lifting and cardio."

Lys and Sana appeared in the doorway a moment later, loosing sighs of relief. "Right, my boy," Lys said, wiping strands of hair away from her face, "what do you need us to do?"

Emerson braced his hands on his hips, scanning the pile of boxes and luggage and other things on the floor and his side of the room. "Dad, can you help me loft the bed?"

"Of course." Aedion checked the metal bedframe. "Simple. You grab that side, I'll get this side, we both lift."

"Good. Mom," Emerson threw her a grin, "I know how much you want to, so yeah, you can organize my clothes."

"I know they won't stay that way," Lys chuckled.

"Sana?"

"Yeah?"

"Can you do all my desk shit?"

"That's a very broad term," Sana drawled.

Emerson rolled his eyes. "Look, you're better at putting that stuff in normal places, and if I do it, I won't be able to find shit."

"Language," Sana teased, grinning. "Yeah, I'll handle that. You try not to pop your shoulder out. And yes, Dad, I was talking to you."

"Smartass," Aedion grumbled, his lips quirking up. "Okay, on three!" He counted off and pushed and he and Emerson successfully lifted the bed into lofted position. He slapped his son a high five, quietly jarred by just how tall the boy was--almost at eye level with him.

Fuck, when did that happen?

About an hour later, they were all sorting through Emerson's stuff and slowly beginning to make his half of the room look more comfortable than the blank walls initially indicated when the door creaked open and another boy walked in, rolling a couple of suitcases behind him.

"Emerson!" the guy exclaimed, shoving his suitcases off to the side. "Bro, I didn't know you were here!"

"Selvari?!" Emerson half-shouted, abandoning the suitcase he was unpacking to grab the dark-haired boy in the bro-est bro hug Aedion had ever seen. "Shit, you're my roommate?"

"Unless you can't read, yeah," Nyx Selvari grinned. "You're stuck with me, Ashy."

"Shut up, jackass," Emerson laughed, "I might not be much, but I'd know Room 420 anywhere."

"Cheers." Nyx knocked his fist into Emerson's. "Gonna make it a--nope, nope, not saying that shit, nope!" It was like he hadn't realized Aedion and Lysandra were right there.

"Hi, Nyx," Lys laughed, grinning at her son and his friend. Nyx had played football with Emerson for years, all the way through high school, and the boys had practically grown up together. "Fancy meeting you here."

"Nice to see you again, Mrs. Ashryver," Nyx beamed. "I didn't ever check my housing except to see that I'd actually signed up for a meal plan, so I had no idea who my roommate was gonna be."

"That's funny," Lys snickered. "Mer didn't even check his student email until a week ago."

"Mom!" Emerson groaned. "Stop it!"

"Never," Lysandra smirked.

"So much for helping," another deep voice drawled, Nyx's father entering the room to plop two armfuls of shopping bags down onto the floor. "You could at least--shit, Ashryver?!"

"The one and only," Aedion smirked. "Getting a little tired, old man?"

"Fuck you," Rhysand Selvari snorted, tossing his arm around Aedion's shoulder. "Darling, look what the cat dragged in!"

"What a lovely surprise!" Feyre beamed, depositing her load of shopping bags and a large duffel bag next to the pile of stuff on the floor. "Now we know our son will have at least a little bit of sense in his life."

"Moooom!" Nyx groaned. "Really?"

"Cheer up, mijo," Feyre smirked, ruffling her son's hair. "We'll be out of your hair soon enough and you and Emerson can do whatever stupid things the new college freshmen do." She hugged both Aedion and Lys. "So good to see you again."

"You too," Lys grinned. "Have fun getting the wild one settled."

Evening had fully fallen when Emerson walked downstairs with Lys, Aedion, and Sana, the four of them all walking over to the pickup and pausing, unsure quite how to proceed. Up in the dorm, Lys had already shed a few tears, and though Aedion would deny it to hell and back, he'd shed a few tears too.

"Fuck, stop growing up so fast," he muttered, trying to mask the thickness in his voice with gruffness.

Emerson stepped into his father's embrace, squashing down a few tears of his own. "I'm not that far away, Dad."

"I know." Aedion rested his hands on his son's shoulders. "I'm so goddamn proud of you, son."

His son wiped the back of his hand across his face. "Love you too, Dad."

Lysandra pressed her son into her embrace, identical emerald-green eyes soft and shining with mingled pride and sadness. "I love you, my son." She sniffled. "Please don't do anything stupid."

He snorted a soft laugh. "I'll try, Mom. Love you." She released him, and he turned to his sister. "Have fun being the only child." Try as he might, he couldn't quite muster the swagger he'd intended.

Sana gifted him with a fierce hug, whispering something into his ear that made him snort with laughter. "Fucking gods, Sana!"

"I'm not wrong!" she beamed. "Don't let the RAs catch you hiding booze, Mer."

He snickered. "I'll try."

As Aedion reversed the truck and slowly pulled away from the parking lot, Emerson stood in the lot, a half-sad, half-excited grin on his face, and waved to his family until they rounded a corner and he fell out of sight. Lysandra exhaled shakily, dabbing a few stray tears from her face.

"It's okay, babe," Aedion murmured, sliding one hand across to link with his wife's. "He's gonna be just fine."

"I know," she whispered. "Gods, it's not easy to leave your kid at college, though."

He squeezed her hand, his thumb tracing circles on her thigh. "No, it's really not."

Back at the hotel that night, Lys curled herself as close to Aedion as possible, taking comfort in the warm, solid strength of him. He held her just as close, tangling his fingers into her soft, dark hair, feeling the heat of her mother's tears drip into his worn old sleep shirt. He pressed tender kisses to her forehead as she let her emotions pass, allowing her to reach up and brush the tears off his own cheeks.

"He needs this," she murmured, convincing herself as much as him. "He's going to do just fine, Aeds."

"He will." Aedion kissed her gently. "Because he's your son, Lys."

She sniffled. "You're a big old teddy bear, babe."

He wasn't even going to try to deny it.

~~~

TAGS: this is my general list, please lmk if you want to be tagged or not :)

@charlizeed

@cretaceous-therapod

@clea-nightingale

@autumnbabylon

@nerdperson524

@fireheartwhitethorn4ever

@morganofthewildfire

@rowanaelinn

@wesupremeginger

@stardelia

@shanias-world

@mybloodrunsblue

@swankii-art-teacher

@wordsafterhours

@cookiemonsterwholovesbooks

@violet-mermaid7

@holdthefrickup

@goddess-aelin

@rowaelinismyotp

@dealfea

@irondork

@elentiyawhitethorn

@live-the-fangirl-life

@darling-im-the-queen-of-hell

@chronicchthonic14

@lovely-dove-zee

@sweet-but-stormy

@hanging-from-a-cliff

@jorjy-jo

@rowaelinrambling

@thegreyj

@silentquartz

@backtobl4ck

@throneofus7

@elizarikaallen

@llyncooljones

@booknerdproblems

#my writing #answered prompt #lysandra ennar #aedion ashryver #lysaedion #and children #lysaedion as parents #lysandra x aedion #lysaedion fanfic

68 notes · View notes

justreadertings · 2 years

Text

Coffee Shop Rules- Part 2

Ok I’m back! This is definitly going to be longer than one part lol. I’m already getting attached to them, whoops. Anyway, I’m excited for you all to read this, and I’m making a slightttt change to the original, only because I hadn’t planned for this to be multiple parts. Don’t worry, it’s only about Lysandra dating Aedion, which I’m erasing lol. (for now). In terms of Aedion, we have no Aedion.

anyway. Have fun with this chapter, and I hope to get more to you soon before my week in New York where I will be MIA fr. Ok I’ll stop rambling. All my love- Magee

Masterlist

3000 Words

TW: Cursing, mentions of domestic violence

Coffee Shop Rules

Rowan was in a shitty mood. He knew that, and yet, he turned into Fenrys and Connell’s driveway. He was only going to this party because he knew they were all going to be loose in the world come two months, and Aelin and his mother had teamed up to drove on and on about “savoring time together”. It had given him enough heartache at the thought of leaving his poor mother alone when he left for college, adding his friends to the mix was too much.

So he was going to this stupid party, bringing stupid beer. Rowan ran his hands over his face, tired. It had been a rough few days.

His father had died when he was three. He didn’t even remember him that much. But his parents had been maddeningly in love- so much so that his mother never even wanted to get back out there, even fifteen years after the fact. This all boiled down to his father’s anniversary being a rough day for his family. He’d bought his mom flowers, they’d planned to bake, he planned to pretend it didn’t bother him that much. Same as every year.

But when he and his mom were going to leave for the cemetery, he’d gotten a call from Aelin. She’d known what day it was. She wouldn’t have called if something hadn’t happened. And an oily feeling had swarmed in his gut.

As soon as he picked up, all he’d heard was breathing. Shallow, watery breathing. He had said her name, probably a couple of times, but in retrospect, it was all very blurry. She hadn’t responded at first, just more of that shallow breathing. His heart had nearly fucking caved in on itself before she finally answered. His mother’s sad, tired eyes had gone wide, waiting both for his attention and to know what was going on.

But Aelin had said, “I should’ve called. I’m sorry.” Her voice was muffled. She wasn’t talking quite right.

“What’s wrong?” He’d asked.

It took a long time before she said, “My nose. I think it’s broken.”

So instead of the cemetery, putting flowers on his father’s grave, he and his mother had spent the second part of their afternoon in the emergency room, where they set Aelin’s nose right. She had insisted that he go, that she’d done enough damage by ruining their day.

His mother, with her perfect, caring heart, only waved it off. Rowan wasn’t sure if his mother believed Aelin when she’d said she’d tripped. His mother had only asked her if her guardians were home, and Aelin had said he was out- it was all Sage Whitethorn needed before telling him to make for the emergency room, that they’d take her themselves.

Rowan knew that Aelin was lying, knew that he couldn’t tell, but still felt worthless. He couldn’t be with his mother on her hardest day, couldn’t help Aelin, because if they reported Arobynn she’d be moved across the state, again, far away from him.

Three months. Three months until she was eighteen. And then it was over.

Now, Rowan rested his head against the steering wheel of his old red truck. He was so tired of it. Tired of the excuses, tired of not being able to help. Tired of working so that one day, he and Aelin could get that apartment they’d always talked about. Tired of the things he’d started thinking about when he thought of his best friend. His brain was too full.

A loud bang on his side door had him startling, and he glanced out of it to see Lorcan. He was staring at him like he was crazy. Rowan shut off the engine, and popped his door open.

“What?” Rowan said at his friend’s expression.

Lorcan, with his dark features and deep voice, was the epitome of gruff when he asked, “what’s wrong with you?”

“I don’t want to talk about it,” Rowan answered honestly.

Lorcan had taken the beer right out of his hands as they made their way towards the door. Rowan snorted as they approached the farmhouse, deep in the bellies of their farmland town. Music was already drifting from the open windows.

“Thursday?” Lorcan inquired. He was a man of few words. It made him a shit therapist, but a good listener.

Rowan shrugged. “Yeah, kinda. It’s complicated.” Technically, it wasn’t a lie. Lorcan, knowing the day, just nodded, not bringing it up again. He needed the balance between Aelin- who he would spill his guts to even if it left him feeling deflated… and Lorcan, who could just get it, and nod.

“Party people!” Shouted their blonde host from the kitchen. Rowan and Lorcan shared a look. They enjoyed their alcohol, and they enjoyed good music- but they were probably the least “party” of all the people in this house. Which seemed to be literally every single one of their friends.

Manon and Dorian were already sharing DNA on the couch, Manon waving a hand to them without even looking, too caught up on Dorian’s lap.

Lorcan made a face, even though they were all used to their antics, though he and Elide weren’t much better. Rowan figured the face was probably due to the weird history between Lorcan’s girlfriend and Manon. Aelin had sworn him to secrecy when she’d told him that Manon and Elide were a thing their freshman year and Manon’s junior. Manon and Lorcan being the same age had always made Rowan feel strange, though, and it was all really none of his business.

He liked to call Aelin a busybody, but she only called herself a “journalist”. Rowan had laughed, even if he flicked her after, saying that writing everything down in her diary didn’t qualify her as a “journalist”.

Rowan waved to Chaol, Yrene, and Sartaq by the backdoor. He was glad that Chaol had fallen completely head over heels for Yrene after he and Aelin’s break-up. So much so that it had resulted in an accidental teenage pregnancy… but they were happy. Where their baby was on this random Saturday night, he had no idea- Rowan stopped himself. It wasn’t really his problem. Aelin was infecting his mind. Rowan had no space in his brain for other people’s drama. Where was Aelin?

He spotted Lysandra out by the firepit with her boyfriend- or was it ex-boyfriend this week?- who looked very… close. Rowan chose the kitchen instead, still looking.

Elide was sitting up on the counter of the white house, her heels digging into the old, wooden counters as she talked to Fenrys. At that height, she was level with her boyfriend for probably the first time in their relationship. She gave him a chaste kiss, then moved to lean her elbow on his shoulder.

Lorcan handed her one of Rowan’s beers, but Rowan’s hand was suddenly filled with a sugary, pink concoction. He lifted a brow at Fenrys, who was already padding around the giant kitchen, beginning to make another one.

“What the hell is this?”

Fenrys shrugged. “It’s Aelin’s,” he said, before he turned around. His blonde brows furrowed. “Where is your girlfriend?”

“She’s not my girlfriend,” Rowan responded, voice dark. He knew Fenrys was just messing with him, but he was still a dumbass. Fenrys just shrugged, and it made Rowan want to strangle him. He was always so flippant with his words. Rowan frowned down at the drink. “Why did you give this to me?”

Suddenly, the drink was pulled from his hands. “Because he’d know I’d need it.”

Rowan spun to where Aelin stood, looking perfect, as always. She wore a short golden sundress that made her look absolutely stunning. Rowan was actually starting to get uncomfortable with how good he thought she looked. Thankfully, Fenrys drew him out of his thoughts with a laugh.

“Gods, Ace, what’d you do to your face?” Elide reached over and punched his shoulder, her dark eyes assessing.

Rowan’s body tensed, but Aelin’s felt completely liquid as she leaned slightly into his side, already sipping on her fruity drink. “Clumsy me. As always.”

He knew everyone could see the little angry line across the bridge of her nose, but both Lorcan and Fenrys seemed to accept her answer. Elide’s eyes were still cut into little slits, watching Aelin closely. Rowan hated that Aelin refused to tell their closest friends, but he knew that she didn’t want to risk one of them getting emotional and reporting Arobynn or something.

Honestly, with that logic, he was surprised she ever told him- Rowan could barely wake up without the thought crossing his mind anymore. But Aelin wanted her friends- her family. She hadn’t had a family since she was a very little girl, and she needed their support for the many hours that she wasn’t at that house.

But her lie had him feeling protective, and he slipped his arm around her. Aelin offered him her drink but he just squinted at it. “Is that a joke?”

She poked his cheek. “Party-pooper.”

Rowan batted her hand away, and they fake fought with their hands before Fenrys’ snort had him pausing.

“What?” Rowan asked.

The blonde looked between them. “Nothing.” Rowan only glared at his long time friend.

“How’s work?” Elide offered. She was too perceptive for her own good, and Rowan didn’t want to admit that he knew she was saving him.

“Same old same old,” Aelin drawed. “Ugh, except for this absolute douche the other day. Do you remember that?”

Did he remember it? Rowan hadn’t stopped replaying that whole afternoon in the week since it had happened. Aelin hadn’t mentioned anything weird after, hadn’t acted any different, all through their shift and when he dropped her off home. Again- their boundaries were always a little shifty, but they’d only ever kissed for long, long goodbyes- like when he went to camp last fall break and was gone for two whole weeks. And yeah, it was all just those tiny pecks, more for closeness than anything but… it was just kinda out of nowhere. Or at least he thought so. Maybe he’d thought about it so much that his memory was now warped.

“Ro?”

When he blinked, he realized Lorcan, Elide, Fenrys, Aelin and… Nesryn and Nehemia were all staring at him. He hadn’t even seen the girls come in. How long had he been zoning out?

“What?”

Aelin was giving him a weird look, but pasted on that signature smile for their friends. “I asked you if you remember that guy from the other day?”

Rowan shook himself out of his thoughts, and casually said, “How could I forget? You made a your mom joke to him.”

Aelin, at that, cracked what he knew was a real smile. She laughed, her head tilting back, and he just watched her. That was normal, right?

“No!” Elide laughed with her.

“I totally did!” Aelin then went into the whole story, but Rowan was transfixed with watching her talk. He didn’t know how she did it, how she could laugh and smile with their friends after experiencing what she did every day. When something happened to him, he shut down. Radio silence. Aelin would never ask him to explain himself, though. She would just crawl on the couch and tuck her arms around his waist, holding him until he spoke.

Rowan wondered if he was ever able to give her a fraction of the comfort she gave him. He glanced at her, so lively as she told her story, watching for any glimpse of pain. Rowan didn’t know how she hid it so well.

Aelin was buzzed. She knew she was buzzed. But she couldn’t help it- it had been a shit week, shit last two days, and she needed to forget. She was squinting as Chaol was talking about his son, and she found herself without a filter, just responding with, “it’s so fucking weird.”

He’d given her that look, the one where he was trying really hard not to be judgy, but was pretty much failing. He asked, “what’s weird?”

“You have a kid!” She yelled back, before placing her chin back in her hand. “You’re like… a person. Like a real life human.”

Chaol actually laughed at that, and he told her himself that she was drunk. She’d just smiled, feeling dreamy. Her mind was racing, bouncing between the strangeness of her longtime friend and ex having a real, human baby, and the niggling idea that she should be somewhere else. She felt like that a lot, though. Like even when she was happy, she should be spending her time better, doing something more worthy of her time.

She was also contemplating if she could use a third (fourth?) of these pink drinks. Rowan had gone in to grab her water a few minutes ago, claiming that if her head was tilting at that far of an angle, she could probably use some sobering up.

Chaol was talking to Dorian then, who’d finally taken a break from Manon. Aelin was fairly certain the blonde was chatting up Elide, which she found weird. Aelin’s sober mind knew that it was hypocritical, as she was talking to Chaol, but that was different. She didn’t know why, but it just… was.

“What’s with the frown, Ace?” Lysandra said, coming to sit on the edge of her lawnchair. The fire was blazing, and Aelin’s fuzzy vision swam in it. When Aelin turned to look at her, Lysandra gasped and grabbed her chin. “Gods, how’d you get that?”

Aelin frowned and turned her head out of Lysandra’s hand. “Lemme go,” she pouted.

“Uh oh,” Chaol smiled. “It’s someone’s bedtime.”

“Is not,” Aelin said, crossing her arms.

Dorian just laughed, nudging Chaol. “She’s getting defensive, too. Where’s Rowan? He can go and tuck her in.”

“It’s not my bedtime!” She yelled, even though she knew she was acting like a toddler. Gods, maybe she was drunker than she thought. It occurred to her that that probably wasn’t a great thing. She had work in the morning

“Why are you sad, Ace?” Lysandra asked, speaking low. Aelin leaned into her touch, no better than a housecat. She couldn’t help it, though. She needed a motherly touch. Maybe she’d call out for Yrene.

“Rowan won’t tuck me in,” she said. “At least not at my house.” her words were muffled in Lysandra’s lap.

Her friend laughed, running her fingers through her cropped hair. They were all saying something, probably talking about her, but she was too tired to argue. She only heard Lysandra say, close to her ear, “are you sure you’re saying everything you mean to?”

She didn’t answer, didn’t know how long she stayed draped over Lysandra’s lap, near-asleep.

“Bedtime?”

She heard Rowan’s voice, deep and gruff. She smiled into Lysandra’s warm, soft legs. Aelin reminded herself to steal her friend’s moisturizer.

“I’m not tired,” she muffled.

Lysandra was messing with Aelin’s hair, stroking and braiding. Rowan was speaking lowly to her friend, but it was all so soothing until-

“Aelin!”

Suddenly, there was a sharp pain between her neck and her head. And then everything moved so fast, it felt like people were crowding, and she was starting to sit up, even though her drink had her feeling very dizzy. Her vision swarmed, but she felt Rowan’s warm hand on her shoulder.

Lysandra asked, “What happened to you, Ace?”

Fuck. Aelin didn’t think anyone would be digging around her skull tonight. Fuck fuck fuck. She felt literally blurry, but she forced herself to stand. Yeah, she was a lot drunker than she thought. Rowan was holding her to him, and she hated that she was swaying. Hated that she couldn’t depend on herself, hated that he wasn’t demanding to know what happened either. He was always so quiet, so patient. It used to bug her, and now, she was just envious.

“Gods, should you even be drinking with a mark like that?”

“Should I get Yrene?”

Aelin held out her hands, acting far more sober than she was. “Look, I am fine.” All of her friends, standing around the fire, were looking very doubtful. “You do not need to get our resident nurse. Ok?”

Dorian frowned at her, and she blinked over and over again to actually make him out. “So how’d you get that bump on your head?”

Aelin fought the urge to reach for it, tracing the bulging hurt there. “I fell, ok? I was cleaning and I was… indulging, and I fell. Hit my head on my dresser.” That wasn’t a total lie. Her head did hit her dresser…

“And your nose?” Chaol asked. He’d always been all careful and protective, but now that he was a father, gods he was becoming insufferable with it.

“I’m fine. That one was a sober accident,” she joked. Aelin ignored the way Rowan held her tighter to him.

Suddenly, the sound of the sliding glass door interrupted their silence. Fenrys’ voice rained out, loud, joking, “Damn, did I just walk into an intervention?”

All of her friends turned and glared at him. She turned, feeling a bit like she was in slow motion, to glare at him herself. She didn’t like that they were about two more incidents away from this party moving in that direction. Aelin cursed herself for not choosing another lie.

Fenrys held up his hands at their expressions, then turned on his heel and went back inside.

They were all looking at her again, but she only turned her head up to Rowan. “Can you take me home?”

A muscle in his jaw twitched, and she couldn’t exactly decipher the look in his eyes. But he nodded, once. She didn’t like how stony his demeanor was, so she circled in his arms, reaching up to hold his face. His green eyes were thoughtful and sad.

She hoped he understood that she was sorry she didn’t tell him, that it was just getting… embarrassing. She didn’t want to start every shift with an update of what new part of her body was aching.

Rowan stared at her a moment more, before saying, “let’s go.”

She was never more grateful for the safety she found in him- in his truck and his driving- than she did then, when she could just close her eyes against the seat, ignore the dull pain from where her head had been tossed against her dresser, and drift off to sleep.

Ok there it is. Hope you don’t kill me. more churning in my brain, so hopefully more to come!

Taglist:

@leiawritesstories

@tomtenadia

@fireheart-violet

@backtobl4ck

@morganofthewildfire

@rowaelinismyotp

@aelinchocolatelover

@thegreyj

@foughtconquered

@swankii-art-teacher

@booklover242

@stardelia

@numbers-colors-fashion

@bookcide

@viajandosinalas

#Coffee shop rules #CSR #rowaelin #rowaelin fanfiction #tog #sjm #tog fanfiction #sjm fanfiction #throne of glass #throne of glass fanfiction #rowan whitethorn #aelin galathynius #coffee shop au

53 notes · View notes

pearblossommina · 1 year

Text

ToG Read-A-Long, Kingdom of Ash, day 2

Ch 7

Dorian

Spider

Is it bad that I kinda like the spider 😂

I just think it’s cute that she told him “you can’t pronounce my name” and then instantly had a human-pronounceable name ready to give him. Girl’s been working on her human-sona all her life and now she finally has an opportunity to unveil it.

Idk, I like spooky characters that are actually friends. Suriel vibes. Hopefully she doesn’t murder them all in their sleep.

Ch 8

Reading about Aelin getting tortured is going to break my feeble heart, I might actually be too soft to endure this, it’s gonna give me nightmares.

I don’t really know Connall that well, but it sucks that Maeve had him stab himself to death. I feel bad for Fenrys too! Like ugh. Emotional damage.

Ch 9

I need a small morsel of hope to cling to right now. I hate this.

Ch 10

Hey, remember when he proposed to you while you were in dragon form

Remember when you said you wanted to slow this down

And now this is happening

Mixed signals, Lysandra

He needs cuddles

That’s what he needs

If you wanna be with Aedion you gotta go get your dragon bod on and cuddle him up

Ch 11

I’m actually kinda surprised to hear Chaol’s father is the last stronghold against Erawan. I guess it makes sense, since he wasn’t too fond of his son serving the King of Adaran… but it just seems like all the villains should be in league with one another, doesn’t it?

If they’re gonna go where witches are - I wonder if we’ll get a sweet Dorian x Chaol reunion?

Probably not. Since I think they’re in two different places and Dorian wants to go into Morath.

But maybe the witches will be nice, and want to make out and join forces!

Ch 12

Fuck, Aelin. I’m broken too. It’s good she has some fight left in her. Very surreal to see her dead mom’s ghost come to comfort her.

Rowan and the others are on the way tho! They’re near enough to feel your fighting spirit! Keep hoping, keep fighting, because babe is on his way. And he’s bringing friends.

Ch 13

They found the Crochans! Do they want to join forces!

This old witch knows exactly who Manon is!

She’s family! And she’s very welcoming! Aw!

Ch 14

Omg ok shit just got real

I think I have too high of hopes for Manon “the child of peace who’s supposed to unite the witches.” She didn’t even try, lol. Just brutally murdered those two covens. I mean - it’s fine - they were kind of being aggressive and came at them first - and maybe it was a show of faith to the Crochan’s to fight and kill so many ironteeth, but! I’m team Dorian a little bit. Team, what if those wyverns were given love and good riders. Team, just because you were raised and trained to be evil doesn’t mean that’s all you’ll ever be.

My heart goes out to him, with that severed Yellowlegs head. He’s learning the hard way that witches can be just as breakable as human women.

Ch 15

“Cyrene slumped to the ground, eyes unseeing.”

Jesus, Dorian! Chill out!

I actually did like her, lol. It’s ok, I wasn’t that attached. Maybe she taught him a little bit about shapeshifting? In her final moment? Maybe Dorian can harness the ability to shapeshift and use that to get into Morath. As a mouse, or something.

And the thing with Manon. Idk. I guess I don’t really know what it means to unite the witches and bring peace. Because some of those witches are vile and violent and deserve to be brutally slaughtered, like Manon’s grandma, who’s pretty much never done anything to redeem herself. But then, other witches are pretty chill and cool once you get to know them. They’re people too, with hopes and dreams and feelings. So I feel like just inviting the Ironteeth here to the Crochan camp and killing them impressively is NOT the way to go about it. But idk if Manon knows any other ways.

Maybe Dorian can help her, but idk.

It’s good to see them talking to each other. Their relationship needs development, lol, so I’m happy to see them developing.

#tog read along 2023 #kingdom of ash

7 notes · View notes

rowanaelinn · 2 years

Note

I reread all the chapters too and nonnie is right.You do mention Rowan being a twin in ch 3. The person that died is obviously related to Rowan so either that twin or maybe his mom?! The twin in only mentioned once so maybe they were not that close cause if they were why wouldn’t it come up more. Either way Aelin does think she is the one the crash damaged more and I guess compared to Rowan she is.She probably wished she didn’t survive…

The root of all the misunderstandings imo is Evalin.She was probably the one telling the nurses to not allow Rowan in while telling Aelin he didn’t come at all.Her reason probably being that she lost too much already. It could’ve also been Aedion or Gavriel but I don’t think so.

Ezra ur probably enjoying watching all of us suffer aren’t u😭😭

okay I got that ask on Tuesday and ever since I have been rethinking the entire story because it was either I changed the entire plot or I just admitted that I'm the stupidest person on earth 😭😭😭

After a very careful reread of the chapter you are right I wrote "Rowan was an awkward twin" at one point but... It was a mistake 😭 I'm dumb and dyslexic, which is never a good mix and it led to a very damning typo because my sentence was supposed to be "Rowan was an awkward teen"

Honestly the twin theory was super cool and I tried to find a way to make it work but I couldn't find one, so here I am: admitting that I'm a very bad editor 😂

And an Evil Evalin theory?👀 If what you are thinking is true, Illicit Affairs Aelin and Wires Aelin could have a long chat about their awful mothers 😭

You are right I do enjoy it 😂😂 It really motivates me to write more

#ask #wires ask

9 notes · View notes

shallyne · 1 year

Note

any and all thoughts on aedion pls 🙏🙏🙏

Ohhh, anon, that's an interesting character. I can't say much about tog characters because I'm not really much into tog and I read it a year ago and don't remember that much

I can tell you that I adored Aedion the minute he was introduced. That big swaggering, arrogant male that stepped into the room like it's his and Dorian and Chaol gossiping about him like the ladies at court. It was funny, he was intriguing

Aedion trying to trick an execution by letting his wound kill him? He got me there, loved that for him.

I love Aedion and Aelin's relationship. I loved how Aedion and Aelin both were insecure about telling the other what they had to do in the past and how their cousin would react but they are just happy have each other again

I think many of us forget that Aedion also had fucked up traumatizing past and he's just trying to survive and fight for a better world

I think Aedion had a right to be upset about not being the first to make the blood oath because, after all, it was promised BUT he got a little too mad at that moment for my liking

Like I said yesterday, I also don't take the KOA situation with Lysandra too seriously (for lack of a better word) because they were all in shitty situations and they were losing badly and he lost his cousin again and Lysandra knew about the plan and he was just burnt out and overreacted

I am very disappointed that Lysandra and Aedion didn't adopt Evangeline at the end. I refuse to acknowledge that actually, in my mind they did. They had sich mom and dad energy towards her

#throne of glass #tog #aedion ashryver #aedion x lysandra #Aedion #lysaedion #shallyne asks #shallyne ask #asks #anon ask #anon asks

14 notes · View notes

morganofthewildfire · 2 years

Text

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

After The Rain - Chapter 7

The Train

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

masterlist

~1.6k words

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

“Come on!” The little girl giggled, gesturing to the boy behind her. They were running along the hallway, escaping from the big bad enemies that’d just caught them spying. It was her favorite game to play, spies, and he always liked to play it with her too.

Her mama said it wasn’t real, but she was just being a spoilsport. She’d heard Aedion use that word one, though she didn’t know quite what it meant.

It didn’t matter anyway. Her best friend was with her, and that’s all that did matter.

After turning a corner, she finally slowed to a stop, peeking back around to see if they were still being chased. The boy stopped next to her, breathing heavily from the run.

“I think they’re gone,” she whispered, wiggling her bare toes on the marble floor. Her mama didn’t like her running around barefoot all the time, but she didn’t like her shoes. They were so tight, she couldn’t run in them. Her mama didn’t listen when she said that, just said she wasn’t supposed to be running. Not inside at least. She had to be a little lady, but the little girl didn’t want to grow up quite yet.

“What does this mean, Rhoe?” The little girl heard her mom’s voice reverberating down the hallway, and she realized that she and the boy had ended up near her papa’s office.

“It’s a threat,” her papa said, and she frowned at the way he sounded. She wanted to give him a hug.

“Gods,” her mama cursed. “How did you even get involved with a man like Ioan Jayne?” Who was that? She glanced over at the boy, but he looked just as confused as her.

“I didn’t,” her papa replied. “Someone in the company did, and now Jayne is trying to use this little influence to clamber up to more money. Like always.”

“Well, we can’t give in,” her mama said, and the little girl frowned. “But we can give this to the police.”

Her voice seemed to be moving closer, and the little girl didn’t have time to move before her mama was exiting the room, looking surprised as she spotted the two children nearby.

“What’s wrong, mama?” The little girl asked, and her mama just painted a smile on her face, stepping towards them and crouching down to be at eye level.

“Nothing, Fireheart,” she said, brushing a piece of her hair back. “Why don’t you two go run along to the kitchen? I think the cook has a treat for you.”

The little girl’s eyes lit up with excitement, and she looked over at the boy, who was looking back at her with the same expression.

She’d be a grown up at some point, but for now, she could just be a kid.

--------

She was in utter darkness. There was something scratchy covering her eyes, and no matter how much she tried to claw at it, she couldn’t remove it. Maybe that was due to the way her arms were bound, maybe that was due to the hands on her, clawing at her dress and her legs. She was being pulled backward, struggling and kicking as she was rolled in her stomach.

Hands roughly pawed at her body, and she panted for air, suffocated by the sickening stench in the room. The stench of death. The stench of the body next to her, filling her senses and draining her entire essence into nothing. Nothing but utter doom.

They’d been so close. They’d been so close. But it was futile, and too late, and now he was paying the cost. Not her, but it should’ve been her. It should’ve been her.

She gasped for air, her heart beating painfully as she was lifted up by her bound arms, the rope hung to a hook, keeping her uncomfortably slung into a sitting position. She still couldn’t see either, the blindfold covering her eyes.

She’d been unable to move no less than fifteen minutes ago, whatever drug she’d been forced immobilizing her. But she could certainly feel everything now.

“This’ll teach you what happens when you try to leave,” a sharp voice she didn’t recognize hissed in her ear, and there was nothing she could do as her dress was ripped off, leaving her in her underclothes. She kicked at the culprit, shouting expletives, but he didn’t try anything more, leaving her hanging there. Alone.

She panted, fighting the ache in her body as she shook her head, trying to loosen the blindfold enough to see. She could hear the distinct sound of a body being dragged across the stone, his body.

There was shuffling, so much shuffling and noise, a creaking of a door opening and then being slammed shut. And then she was really alone.

Until the door creaked open again, and slow footsteps sounded her way. She shook her head again, managing to get the blindfold to slip a little bit down her nose.

She was fighting to see anything as a hand slowly dragged up her bare leg. She shifted, trying to fight it off, blinking to try and clear the eye that was slightly peeking out of the blindfold. But the hand gripped her thigh tightly, pressing it against the concrete with bruising force.

“Fuck you,” she spit, even as her hands were dropped from where they were held, still tied together, but leaving her crashing on the floor. It jostled her blindfold again, and she was able to see just enough to see above her. And the sight made her want to vomit.

It was -

“Celaena!” Rowan’s voice broke through her dream, and she gasped as her eyes shot open, finding him right by her bed, wild concern in his eyes. His hand was on her arm like he’d been shaking her awake, and she blinked rapidly, panting for air.

Her unfortunately short nightgown (she could thank Cairn for that) was once again stuck to her with sweat, and she shakily wiped at her eyes.

“Sorry for waking you,” she said, her voice croaky, making her wonder if she’d been shouting in her sleep. Rowan didn’t move, staying crouched by her side.

“Don’t apologize,” he said, furrowing his brows. His hair looked messy from sleep, his eyes puffy like he’d woken up from a fitful sleep to wake her from a fitful sleep. “Are you alright?”

Her eyes slowly dropped to the hand still on her arm and he seemed to sense her discomfort, removing it from her skin. She stared at the place where it’d been, before slowly glancing up to meet his gaze. There seemed to be genuine concern in it.

Celaena cleared her throat, glancing away and sitting up in the bed. Her sweaty hair was glued to her neck, and she lifted a shaky hand to smooth it away. Her braid was coming apart, and she felt the sudden urge to fix it, to pretend like something in her life wasn’t falling to pieces.

But she didn’t have any of her stuff.

Frantically, she pulled at her hair with her fingers, trying to untangle the sweaty clumps with her also sweaty hands. Needless to say - it wasn’t working well.

Rowan shifted where he knelt, pulling a comb out of his traveling bag. Celaena took it without words, running it through her long hair. It tugged at several points, but she just kept ripping it through, not stopping until her hair was smoothed through. And then she braided it quickly, tying it with the ribbon she’d abandoned earlier.

“Thank you,” she said hesitantly, giving him the comb back. Her hands were still shaking. That’d been twice in only two days that she’d had a nightmare about that moment. That horrible, earth-shattering moment.

Probably because of where she was going.

That brought into sharp recall who was bringing her there, and she stiffened. Sure, Rowan was a mystery, a seemingly kind mystery, but he could be just playing her. He could turn out exactly the same. He could be laughing at her internally as she accepted his words, his comb.

She had to be stronger than that.

“You can go back to sleep,” Celaena dismissed, nodding to the armchair in the corner. Her gut twisted a little as she realized how uncomfortable it likely was. But that wasn’t her problem - he was legitimately kidnapping her.

Rowan pursed his lips, hesitating, but nodded and stood up carefully.

“Are you sure you’re alright?” He asked, stepping back toward his chair. It was a lie, but Celaena just nodded. It wasn’t his problem anyway.

“I’ll be right back,” she rasped, pushing herself to a shaky stand. She had to brush past him to get to the bathroom, and the brief contact made her tense. She half-expected him to try and follow her, he probably had to always have some sort of watch on her, but he just stayed by his chair, letting her go.

In the bathroom she braced herself on the tiny sink, squeezing her eyes shut. And then she turned on the faucet, splashing cold water on her face. And then she glanced up at herself, at her pale and splotchy face, her messy hair, her dead eyes.

She allowed herself one minute to break, a small sob escaping her as she covered her mouth with a hand, squeezing her eyes shut. But when that minute was over, she scrubbed at her face and straightened, smoothing her expression.

Celaena didn’t look at Rowan as she reentered the tiny room, immediately heading for the bed, laying down and pulling the sheets back over herself. She acted like she was falling back asleep, but facing away from him her eyes refused to close, staring at the wall instead.

She already knew she wasn’t getting any more sleep that night.

---

taglist:

@shyvioletcat

@courtofjurdan

@leiawritesstories

@elentiyawhitethorn

@westofmoon

@mariamuses

@cretaceous-therapod

@rowaelinrambling

@foughtconquered

@swankii-art-teacher

@rowaelinismyotp

@live-the-fangirl-life

@sailorsassley

@claralady

@gracie-rosee

@theinfernalbookworm

@larisssss

@peppermint-fae

@charlizeed

@llyncooljones

@justreadertings

@backtobl4ck

@wordsafterhours

@story-scribbler

@mybloodrunsblue

@sexy-dumpster-fire

@dealfea

@whoever-you-choose-to-love

@tomtenadia

@house-of-galathynius

@1islessthan3books

@fangirlprincess09

@superspiritfestival

@fromthelibraryofemilyj

@rowanaelinn

@gwynethhberdara

@baxian-argos

@thewayshedreamed

@aelinchocolatelover

@emilyoftheshadows

@rhysands-whore

@gigglinggummybears

@shadowwolf777

@fireheart-violet

@firestarsandseneschals

@wishfulimaginings

@thegreyj

@fireheartwhitethorn4ever

@rhysandswingspan

@poisonous00

#rowaelin #throne of glass fanfiction #rowaelin fanfiction #throne of glass #rowaelin au #throne of glass au #after the rain

52 notes · View notes