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fanfic-obsessed · 5 months

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Ten Years in Two months

While the meat and potatoes of this idea comes a bit later, it does require some finangleing beforehand. Some of the beginning does feel a bit contrived, because it is. In order for the dominoes of the plot to fall right later, we do have to force them into shape now in a series of improbable actions.

Bear with me for a bit, we’ll get there.

There is not really a particular point this starts, save that it is after Padme becomes pregnant (though well before she realizes she is) but before the Umbara arc (or ignoring the Umbara Arc), for no particular reason other than I want Waxer there. A mission is assigned to the 212th to escort Padme Amidala and her retinue to a neutral world for negotiations with the Separatists. They are taking with them commander Ahsoka Tano (the in-world explanation being that she was on Coruscant catching up with course work and they would rendezvous with the 501st, who were on a campaign in that region).

On the way to this neutral world, from the perspective of the rest of the galaxy, the 212th in its entirety vanishes for two months.

From the perspective of the 212th they become trapped on an uncharted planet for 10 years.

For the rest of the galaxy those two months are enlightening into Anakin Skywalker's particular brand of instability. Without the tempering influence of the bonds to his Master and Padawan, compounded by the fact that his secret wife disappeared as well, Well…his attempts to find them could, in the best of lights, be described as unhinged. He did not fall in at this time, for he was given no reason to make that choice (and falling to the dark, into evil is very much a choice. One does not fall by accident, after all), but he made it very clear that the war, protecting innocents, the Republic, or even the lives of his own men meant nothing compared to finding Padme (occasionally he would remember to make it seem as though he was focusing on finding Obi Wan or Ahsoka, though he never quite remembered to include the rest of the 212th). His obsession presented itself in such a way that even Palpatine was reconsidering some of his plans (he still intended to break Anakin into Vader, but he was now inclined to let Padme-and maybe even Ahsoka; Obi Wan was always going to die-live on as a stabilizing influence to his ultimate apprentice).

He was swiftly removed from command of the 501st and had to be kept partially sedated for at least 6 of those 8 weeks.

With the 212th for the first few months, from their perspective, they tried to contact the rest of the fleet. Tried to contact anyone. Tried to escape from their orbit around this one planet, thankfully habitable and with an abundance of edible food. However, though they did not know it, the planet was out of sync with the rest of the galaxy.

Over the period of about two years they shifted from living mostly on the ships with just enough people on the surface of the planet to keep everyone fed to a more permanent settlement on the planet with a rotating skeleton crew up on ships to keep everything running.

Padme found out about her pregnancy pretty early on, and with it came the knowledge that her relationship with Anakin was not the secret she thought it was. Nor was the relationship forbidden like Anakin told her. The marriage was forbidden, because of the Oaths Anakin swore as part of the Jedi Order and how they conflicted with the traditional Nabooian Wedding vows (though she also finds out that the Jedi Order would have helped revise both sets of vows so they did not conflict). Even beyond her own misunderstandings of the Jedi, she started to see the many places where Anakin either deliberately misunderstood his own culture, or deliberately misled her.

In fact it became obvious within the first six months that every culture represented in the ships (The variety of cultures from the natborn admiralty, the Nabooian Delegation, The clones, and the Jedi) all had some misconceptions about all of the other cultures ranging from the humorously minor to massive misunderstandings (One of the minor misunderstandings is between the Jedi and the Clones on names and numbers. The Jedi believe that they are making sure that they are calling the clones what the clones want to be called instead of their designation. The clones think that the Jedi as a whole are uncomfortable with their designation AS names-Which yes but also no-so even though most of the clones prefer a name to their designation, even the few that want to use their designation are told by the other clones that the must choose a name to use around the Jedi).

Obi Wan takes over Ahsoka’s training and the gaps that Anakin had left become very obvious; the place where he taught her something that was outright wrong even more so. About three months in, Ahsoka tells Obi Wan about Anakin’s ‘training’ of being surrounded and fired upon by the 501st. One of the few things that Anakin was right about was that he Jedi would not understand, nor condone, that training. Ahsoka had not realized how disconnected from her own culture she had become in her short time with Anakin. How isolated he had made her from her people. Though she and Obi Wan were the only Jedi, she felt closer than ever to everything she had grown up with as he took on her tuition.

In month 8 Obi Wan, who was looked to as the leader, arranged for a series of times to address the misconceptions held by an for each culture present. When it became clear that they were cut off for the long haul, he helped the variety of people to start to live instead of just surviving. And at the beginning there were a number of natborns among them that were anti clones, or anti Jedi, just as there were many clones that were anti nat born. But with only about 1500 people in total (1300 clones, about 50 natborn officers and support staff, about 150 senatorial support staff) there were simply not enough people to support those kinds of prejudices. It is hard to say that the clones were not human when you listen to the stories of decommissioned batchmates during one of the remembrance ceremonies. Or hate the natborn lieutenant that got drunk and cried all over you about the pregnant wife they left behind.

The twins were born with a village of aunts and uncles, and though they are the oldest, they were not the only ones. Sache, one of Padme’s former handmaidens and part of her senatorial retinue, entered into a relationship with Waxer and Boil, having a child with them that was a year younger than the twins. Many relationships formed and broke apart during those years.

Ahsoka and Padme ended up co parenting the twins, with Padme being called Mom and Ahsoka being called Mom Ah. It was the twins who insisted on their names from their earliest ability to speak.

In year four Cody and Obi Wan get married. Though theirs is not the only relationship that develops, nor the only one with healthy communication, their relationship does highlight to Padme how unhealthy her relationship with Anakin actually was. (It should be noted that, although Anakin’s instability and actions were flashier, this is not Anakin abusing/coercing the poor innocent Padme. In this they are toxic together, both acted in unhealthy ways that compromised their own morals). Padme was able to see how Cody and Obi Wan did not use their love for each other as a bandage for deeper wounds. That CodyWan did not become all consuming; each man had friendships and hobbies and duties separate from each other (even with the friends they shared, they did not act as a single unit, inseparable from each other). The other relationships she saw only drove this point home.

At some point in those ten years she tells Obi Wan of what happened on Tatooine, just before the start of the war. And Obi Wan, eyes betraying his grief and horror at the massacre of the Tuskens asked her why she absolved Anakin of his crimes (By technicality, as a senator Padme did have the authority to absolve Anakin-so even if Tatooine becomes part of the Republic, and the crime is reported, Padme’s actions mean that Anakin cannot be tried under Republic Law). Padme cannot answer him.

Though it does take time, Padem is eventually able to meet Obi Wan’s eyes again after the revelation.

6 years in, Ahsoka and Padme realize that they have fallen in love. Driven by the Jedi teachings for healthy and open communication (though many cultures value open and honest communication, few need it in the same way as the Jedi who are all some degree of Empath), they talk about what was happening. Neither is sexually attracted to the other, but they do want to date each other. But Padme is married to Anakin. And it might have been six years, so they do not know if Anakin even still lived, and if did, he had likely moved on (both of which are reasonable assumptions) but being together without first speaking to Anakin felt too much like giving up the idea that they would find a way home. So they agreed to wait until they were ready to give up that idea.

They had not given up by the time that the 10 year mark rolled around.

In year 7 the chips begin to deteriorate. The material they were made up of were not meant for the extra years of use, plus the method Helix used to stop the accelerated aging (discovered within 5 months of actually having time) created an enzyme as a byproduct that had no effect on the clones, but accelerated the deterioration of the chips. The first three chips were removed after the clones involved complained of migraines. All the documentation in the computer banks (the archive of what was readily available, instead of what was stored on the galaxy’s version of the cloud) of the ships said the chips were to inhibit excess aggression. No one had any reason to not believe the documentation, not even with the realization that the chips were not in the right place for what they were supposed to do (the assumption is that the Kaminoans, for all their genetic know how, just do not understand near human neurology enough to have put it in the right place). Obi Wan met with Helix, the head medic, with Cody after the removal of those first chips. Obi Wan assumed that he did not know about the chips because he had not been on the council when the order was put in. Helix is able to confirm that all of the clones have these chips and what they are supposed to do (according to the literature) and that some were beginning to deteriorate. After it becomes clear that the removal will not hurt the clone, they make the decision to remove all of them. However, believing them to be behavioral modifiers (if incorrectly placed), and as they did not have the optimal equipment to decode them, they all left it at that and put the Chips into storage and basically forgot about it.

Just 15 days shy of the 10th anniversary of their arrival to the uncharted planet, whatever grip that was holding the ships bound to orbit the planet vanished (The planet was in sync with the rest of the galaxy- it is a window of time that is six hours long in the larger galaxy, or 15 days long on the planet) Still not able to raise communications to anyone outside of the planet’s orbit, not knowing how long they would have before they were stuck again, and fearing that they would be cut off from anyone left behind (no one had forgotten that the planet had not registered as there until they were trapped), everyone was loaded onto the ships along with all of their food stores and the 212th left the uncharted planet.

As soon as they hit the galaxy at large again, alarms began to shriek. Every system that communicated with the central systems (basically everything outside of life support) experienced a fatal error upon reconnecting with the galaxy’s central system. It takes 4 days to fix. They have to reset all of the internal clocks/calendars in their computer systems to a date and time two months and 3.5 days after they became trapped (the last 24 hours of that time was spent inputting random dates into the system).

NOTE: There is a very important reason for this. Computers are very black and white about some things, and communicating between computers is often validated on specific information to make sure that both systems are dealing with the same information at the same thing. Current Date/Time had to be validated for the purpose of navigation. Galactic/Stellar drift is very real, and in the mapped regions of the galaxy that drift is precisely calculated. It is impossible to keep a real time map of every object in the galaxy, instead there is a systematic ping that goes out at specified times (Twice per Galactic Standard year) remapping every object in the known galaxy and correcting the location in the centralized system. Then Navigation computers calculate how long it has been since the last ping to figure out where everything is and a safe route. That only works if the current date time matches the current date time of the centralized system exactly (some of those object movements, even objects large enough to damage the largest of ships, can be measured in microseconds).

No one realizes why this is an issue. The entirety of the 212th believe that 10 years have passed (born out by their time keepers, which had ticked along for ten years) and yet to the larger galaxy only two months have. They absently notice that by the time anything is working again the planet they were on had vanished.

A message is sent to Coruscant, to the Jedi temple, but it is a hesitant thing. Deliberately vague in details. Obi Wan has no idea what 10 years has done for or to the war effort. The response is almost immediate, a call from the Jedi council. The very first question out of Mace Windu’s mouth is a cranky sounding ‘Where in the Force have you been for the last two months?’ (Look Master Windu is absolutely ecstatic that they are safe and not dead, but he has spent the four days helping to keep Anakin contained-the sedation began to wear off faster now that he could feel Ahoska and Obi Wan in the Force again-, the last two months realizing that Obi Wan ran about a third of their side of the war, and had been in the middle of sleeping for the first time in weeks).

There is quite a bit of confusion as both Obi Wan and Mace were absolutely sure the other had lost it over how long the 212th had been gone (Obi Wan: we were trapped for ten years; Mace: Bullshit! You’ve been gone for 2 months). It is Ahsoka’s appearance that convinces Mace that something more is going on (he would not know the children, and Ahsoka is the only other one for whom 10 years-or 10 years and 5 months for the clones- would make a huge visible difference). Mace is able to convince Obi Wan that they really have only been gone two months and the 212th makes its way back to Coruscant, reeling over the disconnect (The Lieutenant who spent the last 10 years mourning over the missed moments with their wife and unborn child…hasn’t even missed the birth).

The mind healers who have been dealing with Anakin nearly weep in relief at the news that Padme Amidala is with the 212th and safe. They know that Anakin needs many much therapy still but they have hope he will actually pay attention now that his wife is back.

The 212th, now a community in a way that they had not been, returned to Coruscant. They do not split in the ways that they would have before (before relationships and children) and peer at the lives they had left behind that they no longer quite fit the shape of.

The lieutenant brings home their best friend (a clone who had not picked their name before the mission, but decided to go with 29, which they picked to reference the number of a decommissioned batchmate) to meet their wife, only for some of the wife’s family make an awful comment about flesh droids and being a pet (thankfully their wife was equally embarrassed by her brother’s behavior).

Obi Wan, Cody, Padme, and Ahsoka go to the Jedi temple, to the Jedi Council (the twins, like the rest of the children, were left aboard the Negotiator in the care of their extended family). They speak of the planet where they had been trapped and the lives they grew there.

Padme took the time to apologize to the Council, formally, for the violation of their beliefs that she and Anakin had perpetrated by marrying as they had. She could admit that while Anakin had not told her of any Jedi traditions for marriage, or really any traditions they might be violating by marrying, she had made no effort to check either.

As an afterthought Obi Wan told the Jedi Council about the chips deteriorating, but that they did not appear to be doing anything anyway (To which every other member went: “What chips?”). Upon being asked Obi Wan calls for Helix to get a chip or two out of the storage closet they had been forgotten in. Which was then promptly handed to people with specialized equipment for decoding bio mechanical chips.

After the latest round of sedation has worn off Padme, Obi Wan, and Ahsoka go to see Anakin. They are told that before Anakin can be released he needs to be assessed by three different mind healers. They go intending to tell Anakin of the twins. Padme also goes with the intent to test the waters about the possibility of separating (She does not know that her and Ahsoka dating would go anywhere, nor are either of them even thinking of it right now, but even leaving that aside Padme has realized that her and Anakin are not healthy together). Things do not go quite as intended.

At first Anakin is so happy to see all three of them, he exclaims over Ahsoka being so grown up (she is now 24, now older than Anakin). It rapidly becomes clear that Anakin expected he would be released immediately, now that they were back. There was a small blip, a frown and a strange heaviness when he realized that all three of them were backing the healers that he needed to be assessed. Anakin also did not like how close Ahsoka and Obi Wan were, oh before they vanished he would joke about Ahsoka being their shared padawan, but he preferred it when Obi Wan’s lessons unintentionally reinforced the idea that Ahsoka was better off with Anakin than any other Jedi.

There were a few moments when he could speak to Padme alone, and the way he spoke left Padme feeling cold. There was nothing overt but it all reinforced a possessiveness that Padme realized she did not want in her or her children's lives. They leave without telling Anakin about the children.

Padme tries six more times to go and talk to Anakin about separating. At best he acts like he does not hear or understand her words. At worst he starts ranting about Obi Wan trying to steal his wife and needing to be sedated.

Regretfully, and with the backing of both the Jedi and the 212th community, Padme starts the process to get a divorce. Nabooian traditions insist that a couple that wants to divorce must meet with a Nabooian marriage counselor first, to see if reconciliation is possible. Setting this up takes several months as, upon being informed of proceedings Anakin had a second breakdown. His connection to the Force was such that the Jedi needed to block the connection lest he become very destructive. Only the Force Blockers left him not coherent enough to attend the session with Counselor. In the end the Jdi built a special room just to block Anakin’s specific connection to the force for them to meet in. Traditionally the divorcing couple meets at least 5 times before permission is given to divorce. It took one meeting for the Counselor to grant Padme her divorce.

The 501st had not been assigned a new general by the time the 212th returned, and Ahsoka was almost ready for knighthood. She took command of the 501st for a total of 4 months, it was too uncomfortable and too much like she was replacing Anakin (made weirder by the fact she still wanted to date his soon to be ex wife and was helping to raise his children). In the end Obi Wan ended up taking direct command of the legion, with Cody taking the lead of the 212th. This also made everyone uncomfortable, thankfully the war ended three months after that (the revelation of what the chips did had the council contemplating finding the planet that 212th had been stranded on).

Palpatine had been indiscrete around someone who he had assumed would back his power play for an Empire. To be fair, in another world that family would have been high ranking imperial with very human centric tendencies.

Palpatine had not expected a Lieutenant of the Galactic Navy, member of the 212h or not, to whip out a slug thrower and shoot at a party when Palpatine had admitted to knowing about the slave chip in the clones' heads.

To be fair, neither did the Lieutenant.

#star wars #star wars the clone wars #fanfiction prompt #obi wan kenobi #star wars au #anakin skywalker #codywan #bamf obi wan #Anidala critical #sheev palpatine #Not for Anakin Fans #anakin critical #Order 66 did not happen #jedi order respected #jedi order

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sailing-ever-west · 1 month

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The Vinsmoke men are misogynistic and it's so narratively important even though it's mostly subtext and never outright stated. None of them ever say anything against women specifically, and they don't seem to discriminate as far as who can be warriors, but their actions reek of it nonetheless and I can't stop thinking about it.

On the surface it seems like Sanji gives thought to treating women differently and the Vinsmokes don't, but it's clear through their actions that the only "equality" they're really upholding is that no gender is exempt from abuse and exploitation.

It's like when people say "well if you want equality, women should get drafted into the military too!" When the problem is that no one should be forced to join the military. That's basically exactly what Germa is doing.

Sanji's view of women is frequently flawed and a bit myopic, but he seeks to treat them with kindness and love and respect, whereas the Vinsmokes make no attempt at philosophy about women and just treat them horribly.

The most glaring example is probably Cosette, who they berated for making food they didn't like and then proceeded to beat unconscious solely to shatter her confidence and upset Sanji. And when Sanji is understandably enraged at their horrible abuse, they assume the reason is that he was physically attracted to her and didn't want the object of his attraction damaged (saying they didn't know he Liked her, and if the busted up face wasn't a dealbreaker they could make her Sanji's personal attendant, which also reaaally sounds like code for something else).

Another aspect is that despite having no emotions, the Vinsmoke brothers still seem to experience attraction to women. But it's not love in any sense of the word, just purely physical. They find Nami attractive, even wanting to arrange to keep her around when the Strawhats are captured by Big Mom (ew), and there's that scene of them and Judge in their private room surrounded by mostly drunken unconscious (and rather scantily dressed if I remember correctly) barmaids that were sent to them. Granted, nothing Happens in that scene, but the undertones are gross and we're only shown a small portion of the night. Whatever the case, it's clear that these women were not sent in to be equal, respectable company, but an objectified distraction to pair with alcohol, and were treated as such.

And then there are the internal family dynamics, which I think are the biggest and most important part.

To start, there's Reiju. On the surface she seems like she has the same status as her brothers, a modified Germa weapon capable of performing as her father wants. But whenever Judge talks about being proud of his children, he always emphasizes the triplets. Often he doesn't even mention Reiju, and his attention to the boys' training seems to be much closer than to hers. Her raid suit is also more sexualized, as though that's expected to be part of her arsenal. And of course, there's her name meaning "zero" while the boys are all numbered. She is the eldest, but she survives by being ignored, and it's clear that her father prefers her emotionless brothers. This feels symbolic as well since being emotional is often seen as a feminine trait, portrayed as a weakness. Judge hates weakness. And so he hates emotion, hates women.

But at the root of it all, really, is Sora. Sora who's choices and body and children were stolen from her for an abusive man's ideals about war and domination. We don't really get to know how much choice she had in her marriage, but given Judge's royal status and the fact that they obviously share zero values I think it would have to be a strategic political arrangement at best, and something she got no say in at worst.

The kids are all named in a numbering system, which also reeks of Judge not letting her into the decisions. And, of course, there is the absolutely horrific experience of being forced into prenatal surgery to genetically modify her children against her will, to the point that the only way she could exercise any agency was to poison herself in an attempt to save even one of them. She was literally just a baby-producing machine to Judge and it couldn't be more blatant.

The violent, self-centered, and misogynistic Vinsmoke brothers are born directly from a woman's choice being taken away from her. Kind, selfless, and loving Sanji is born directly from her one act of defiance, and then later saved by his sister's one act of defiance as well (after which, she was programmed to be obedient).

Basically, the Vinsmoke family is built and preserved on the abuse and exploitation of women, and Sanji is the black sheep for many reasons, but I suspect a rather large one is that he's the ultimate antithesis to that.

#one piece #black leg sanji #vinsmoke reiju #vinsmoke sora #vinsmoke judge #vinsmoke siblings #vinsmoke family #germa 66 #whole cake island #wci spoilers #character analysis #one piece meta #essay #misogny #women in media

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josephquinnswhore · 1 month

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Watchful Eyes

Pairing: Joel Miller! Stalker boyfriend! x female reader

Summary: Joel hates when you go drinking.

Content Warning: shit writing, I’m drunk soooooo, stalker boyfriend Joel, reader is female and drinks alcohol, not seeing red flags.

Note: I’m drunk and this is trash.

Joel hated this—your one day of the two of you not working; and yet you’d insisted on seeing your friend, your best friend. You insisted. Pleaded, tried to make him see reason, that this was worth it, for you.. it was something that you’d hardly ever got to do. The stress of work and trying to keep a healthy relationship was diffficult, and Joel knew the struggle too.

He had to unlearn how to check your location, eyes lingering on the text chat where you’d messaged fifteen minutes ago stating you loved him. But did you really, if you’d not replied to his message. Could he really change his habits? Probably not.

12am rolls around and still no sign of you.

“Call me baby. Where are you?” You were drinking with your friend, of course a few others, all female, which he was thankful for. But that wasn’t enough to stop his mind from wondering. Maybe you’d explore something about yourself if only surrounded by women.

“Got some people coming over. Talk soon!” You texted back as normally as you could, thanks to auto correct.

He growls at the text, why in the world would you message him something so vague, who was coming over, when, were you going somewhere? When would you be home? Were there going to be men? He dreaded it, the anxiety and insecurity he faced as being with someone as beautiful as you.

“Fuckin Jesus Christ!” He cursed to himself, as his fists slammed onto the recliner he sat on. He trusted you, of course he did. You were a sweet woman, a loyal and wonderful women who had never given him a reason to ever doubt him. So why did he?

He didn’t trust a single soul to care for his girl. Especially while she was under the influence.. vulnerable.

As he started his car, he thought of every reason to excuse his irrational behaviour. He wanted to make sure you were safe, cared for, that no one were trying to grab onto you with their venomous hands. “Need to make sure you’re okay.” He murmured as his truck roared to life. Like all of his actions would be excused somehow if he said it aloud.

It’s almost humourous, how close you lived to your friend. Less than two minutes drive, a few streets away.. but he knew they would recognise his car, it was blantanly obvious, a white pickup with all of his construction gear on the back. So he turns the truck off and the lights, letting it roll down the hill until he can see you, standing on the balcony with a drink in your hand.

Only then does he pull the hand break as quietly as he can. He readjusts his blue cap so that he can tuck his stray curls under them, they’re unruly, and blocking whatever vision he has of you… finally.

You’re laughing. Of course you are, you’re a social creature when you drink, a few friends surround you as you make them all laugh. God he’s jealous—no, envious. Why couldn’t it be him? Hearing your sweet laugh and seeing those wonderful eyes staring into his own as he hears whatever you’ve said is so funny.

He texts you again, he can see your friends frown, and complain about how clingy he is, how you have no freedom where Joel is concerned. “Oh shut it you guys he loves me!” You excuse his behaviour and frown as you read the text.

“Oh.. Joel’s sick. I need to get him to the hospital. It could be his heart.” Your friends all give each other a look. You’re frantically packing your belongings before they could protest and Joel drives the short way home, getting into bed before you even start your car to drive home.

“Joel?” You call out wearily. He coughs and murmurs distantly.. “baby?”

Mad, you see him, your heart drops, his cheeks are stained with tears and his hand is clutching his chest. “Oh baby you look like you’re really struggling.” He can only nod at her shoulder as you come closer.

“It’s better now that you’re here. Thank you for coming. I really thought I was a goner..”

Fingers caress his outgrowing stubble.. “I’m here baby. Let’s get to bed.”

The alcohol still flowed through you—your veins, but you were holding him, and he’d never let you know that he smiled as you lie behind him, tucking him under the fleece blanket.

Joel was a bad man, and he loved it. For as long as you were his, he would do anything it took to keep you safe.

#anyway I’m absolutely plastered #drunk writing drunk rambles #imagine Joel #stalker Joel #the last of us #joel miller #pedro pascal #female x reader #Joel miller fanfic

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renren-006 · 9 months

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Hi! Can you write a request for dead reckoning Ethan Hunt? Maybe something where the team, Ethan and the reader are on the mission looking for the key (reader and Ethan are a couple). The mission turns out well. Ethan gets the two parts of the key, but just when he is about to go back to the rest of the team, Benji tells him that the ‘bad guys’ took the reader and Ethan feel his whole world falling and he is willing to risk the whole mission to save the reader.

After fighting a lot of men, he finally finds the reader in the hands of Gabriel and Ethan fights Gabriel with all the hate in his heart for hurting the one he loves.

Then Ethan goes to the reader and he is just really sweet and tender comforting her and asking if she’s okay and he is just happy that she’s alright.

I really hope you can understand, I’m not the best with words😩

It’s totally fine if you don’t want to! Thanx!

Reckoning | Ethan Hunt x Reader

word count: 1972

warning: fluff, good backstory, action, kiddnapping and blood

a/n: hey hey!! yesss!! thank you so much for requesting something!! i loved the movie and i thought about like a love interest other than Ilsa (i do love her character) in the movie!! hope you enjoy!

(for the gif, your ilsa!)

“So, you need my help?” you asked Benji, Luthor and Ilsa who were all three sitting across from you at a coffee shop in Italy. You had been there a few days, tracking Ethan after he told you to go off the radar but you were never one to follow orders, even from the man you loved.

“In short yes” benji said, “Ethan doesn't know any of us are looking for him”

“Of course he doesn't” You said, sighing, your purse hung on the back of your chair, which you picked up. You dug around for some money for the table. “So when are we leaving?” you asked. Benji smiled.

“He's going to be mad when he realizes we got you involved,” Ilsa told you. She flung her arm between yours as you walked out. The two of you had become close in the years since you first met. Years since Illsa first realized that Ethan already had the one he loved and that's why he never would have left with her. Once she found me and apologized, I told her that I could use a friend like her, someone who trusted Ethan, and who would fight with him. You and her had your own ways of keeping in contact with one another.

“I know, but that's just something he'll have to deal with,” you told her. She smiled and the four of you walked out to get ready to go and track down Ethan, which was simple enough seeing as multiple different people were after him in Rome. When you managed to pinpoint his location and get him into the truck he was quite surprised at the gang in the car and soon more surprised by you sitting in the seat next to Luthor.

Ethan stood on the balcony of the building you all took up residence in. The golden sky shone over Venice and created a lumenus look to Ethan. When he noticed your presence a wide smile replaced the solom one he had.

“I didn't want you involved with this Y/N” Ethan told you, you laughed slightly as you walked into his arms.

“I know” you told him, hugging him hard, “i love you too much to let you handle this on your own”

“I love you too Y/N” Ethan told you. The two of you had been together for years. It started when you joined the mission during the collapse of the IMF after the bomb at the Kremlin. You were a friend of Benjis and he wanted your help with the team so you promised to meet at the train station before it left. So when you met Ethan that night and continued to work together, you couldn't help the developing feelings that you had. You knew about the truth of his ex-wife and you knew he had moved on. You knew this because Ethan told you the first night in that train car. You had sat atop the car that night, couldn't sleep after knowing that you were about to stop a nuclear attack. When Ethan joined you he told you, spilling everything he had been thinking about because he said he needed a friend and that you were new, knew almost nothing about him, and for some reason trusted you. You were friends for a bit but then you told him you loved him and he took you out to some nic restaurant and told you he loved you too.

“I'm going with you to that meeting tonight,” you told him. Ethans face paled at the thought of you there with Gabrial and the others, it made his skin crawl.

“I can't let you go, hunny if something happens to you…''Ethan said, begging almost that you didn't follow him into the White Widows den. “Nothing will, Ilsa will be there, she wont let something bad happen to me” You told him, holding his face to look at you. “Nothing bad will happen to me”

Ethan, you and Ilsa turned up at the meeting that night. You wore an old dress Ethan gave for missions, something easy to run and fight in, but also something fitting. It was a blue dress, almost silk. You walked into the party, your arm through Ethans as you walked around looking for Grace. Once you found her, and the rest of the party arrived for that special little meeting the night turned sour and memoryless. After the meeting commenced and Gabrial decided that your life was one he's considered ending for the sake of divinity and driving Ethan crazy you knew your promise to him was going to be broken.

“You choose the girl, or you can let her die the pretty one with the dress” Gabrial said, eying you up. He knew how he could have known. Ethan stuterd and glanced between you and Grace. Ilsa sat there shocked, wondering what her life was worth and seemingly nothing in Gabriel's eyes. As he walked away you remember the hatred in his eyes towards Gabriel.

You didn't remember how Gabriel got you alone in that halfway with five other men around you, but it happened. Ethan was off somewhere and Ilsa was too, it was just you in that hallway. You reached down to your thigh grabbing the knife you had there. You readied yourself for the men that were coming after you, one after another you took them down, slice, punch, kick, slice, punch, kick slice. You were remarkable with a knife and hand to hand combat. When it was Gabriel walking towards you, two knives in hand you knew you had to fight to stay alive. The two of you slashed and jabbed, your arms cut and bruised, your sides kicked and stabbed. You were limping, barely able to hold yourself up and your dress now had several slashes in them revealing your skin underneath. That fight ended with you dropping unconscious.

Ethan was chasing after Grace while Ilsa was on the Widow getting her half of the key. Once they both had their respective keys and the other party seemingly unhappy, they met up and connected the key.

“Ethan” Benji's voice sounded over the radio waves.

“Talk to me,” Ethan said. The static over the radio was deafening.

“They got Y/N” Benji said. The deafening silence that followed made Ilsa tense. Her friend and the love of Ethans life was taken from both of them. Ethans whole world felt like it was crumbling away. “Gabriel is heading twords a bridge” Benjis voice broke ethan out of his inner thoughts. He looked up hatred clear on his face.

“Benji, get me there now” He said running off, Ilsa still standing with the key in hand. “Ilsa get that to Luthor” and he was gone. Ilsa ran back to Luthor Key, placed safely in his hands.

“Ilsa, you need to stop Ethan, if he kills Gabriel then we might not know what this leads to and how to kill the entity” Ilsa stopped from walking away, knowing that if she stopped ethan form the revenge he seeks for his past and for his lover right now, he could hate Ilsa for the rest of his life. “Promise me you'll stop him”

“If it means stopping the entity, then ill do it” Ilsa said, “but he wont like me taking…”

“I know, but revenge comes later,” Luthor told her. Grace sat peacefully in the chair across from him, worrying over her life and the lives of those set back out to fight gabriel. Once she had given the key to Ethan she raced back to the safe space of this room after being instructed to. She didn't want to run anymore, not after everything her life had led her too.

Ethan raced down the paths that Benji gave him, and soon he reached the bridge. There he saw you a knife to your throat, wounds on your skin and Gabriel behind you. Your neck was twisted at an uncomfortable angle while he dig the knife further in, little drops of blood seeping out form under the knife. You lipped when Gabriel walked or studdard in his moves, you were in a great deal of pain and you wanted to lie down. Ethan's view turned red at the sight of you. He wanted to kill Gabriel and Ilsa was still blocks away from the bridge. Ethan walked up the bridge, jacket forgotten at the bottom. At first Gabriel tried to use you as a way to deter Ethan, but with your injuries you only made Gabriel weaker. He threw you down onto the concrete, making you get a splitting headache from the contact with the concrete. Ethans rage only intensified and the fight began, no guns, onl knoves and fists.

The fight went on for ever, your vision got blurry and blurier and the blood you had leaking from your wounds only intensified. Ethan was running out of time to sve you if he wanted you alive. Ilsa was closer racing faster towards the fight, and faster twords stipping Ethan from killing the only informant they had for the key. Ethan only say hate and anger as he fought Gabriel. He hurt the woman he loved and almost killed her infront of him. He wanted to end the life of the man who made his life spiral, and sent him to be the spy and international rogue agent he was.

“Stop!” Ilsa yelled as she came across the bridge, stopping all movement from Ethan and Gabriel. Before ethan tried to stap Gabrial and Ilsa had to run towards the fight again, Ethan wouldn't let you, too blinded by rage. Illsa stepped in taking the brunt of a blade but shocking the two enough that she got a good hit on Gabrial sending him down and cuffign him. Ethan stood there, helpless and watching.

“Go get Y/N, Ethan” Ilsa said as she secured the man before Ehtan. Snapping Ethan out of his trance he ran over to you. You were barely continuous at this point, and bleeding onto the concrete of the bridge.

“Y/N” He said to you, barely hearing the ringing in your ears. It was Ethan, you were positive. Your eyes slightly opened to see his worries. face. “Stay with me. Stay with me” He said again, muttering the words to himself like they will help you stay alive. You smiled and closed your eyes again, knowing you wouldn't die on that bridge tonight.

When you woke up back in the little room of the safe house, your body killing you, you knew they had won. The feeling and overall pain in your body was almost exhausting as you sat up. Ethan stood by the balcony door, watching the sunrise over Venice.

“Ethan” you said, voice horse and head pounding you watched him turn to look at you, a small cut on his cheek held together by tiny bandages. He walked over to you, sitting on the bed beside you. The morning sun shone into the room, casting aglow to the room. Ethan looked tired and he looked happy.

“You scared me” he told you, holding your face, you melted into his hands.

“I'm sorry, I held out for as long as I could. He's calculated,” you told Ethan.

“I know, I fought him too sweetheart,” Ethan said, cracking a joke. As the sun rose higher in the sky you could truly see how saddened he was by how hurt you were.

“Your my hero Ethan” you told him, he smiled down at you, soon all the sadness was replaced by joy. He had you in his arms again.

“Let's go home shall we?” Ethan asked you, just as the sun rose over the buildings and a new day, full of more savings to do.

#ethan hunt x reader #ethan hunt x female reader #ethan hunt #mission impossible #mission impossible dead reckoning

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ghouljams · 5 months

Note

Normally I wouldn't be on anon, but I'm a little embarrassed about sending in this specific ask since it's a wee bit personal.

I just wanted to say that I absolutely adore your portrayal of Moon and Soap's relationship! When I was a little younger, I went through a period of time (about 5-6 years?) where the men I was nearby would play a "fun" game where they would every week or so torment me by coming up to me and admitting they had feelings for me, or ask me on a date.

They, of course, had no intention of actually going out with me, nor did they like me at all, it was merely an enjoyable game to play with the feelings of the weird autistic woman who struggles with social interactions at the best of times. If I went along with it then I was taunted for being so stupid to think someone far better than myself would ever lower themselves far enough to ask me out, and if I denied them? Then I was a stuck-up bitch who thought too highly of herself.

After enduring this for years I've learned that when a man flirts with me my immediate course of action should be to push them away as fast and aggressively as possible. Don't bother trying to find out if there are any actual genuine feelings there, just chase them away. Snap at them. Ignore them. Cut them with words and actions. Don't ever trust that they're being honest.

I think this is why I see so much of myself in Moon. If a handsome beefcake like Soap approached me and started calling me pretty? Yeah, I would definitely try to get rid of him as fast as possible. I mean, a charismatic, gorgeous man like that showing interest? Nah, there must be something suspicious going on.

I like that Moon hisses and spits like a feral cat whenever she sees Soap, regardless of the way she does like him, because that behavior just hits so close to home. And the way that Soap sees through that and just keeps being determined to get through to her? What a man.

I love all your other darlings, it's fun to pretend to be some confident, sociable person in the lovely worlds you've build, but Moon and Soap just feel like home.

I hope this isn't too cringe, I just wanted you to know that your works really touch people <3

It's not cringe at all!! You're saying something true and beautiful, and nothing genuine should be considered cringe.

Moon is one of my favorite characters to write because she's such a delicate balancing act. She's brash and confident in her work, but her self confidence is false at best. She's learned to push people away before they get close enough to hurt her, but she desperately wants people close. In my mind Moon likely went through a similar experience of people asking her out or flirting with her as a joke. I see her as a very weird and lonely kid (interpret that as you will) that had one or two close friends and didn't really bloom until she went to college. I see her settling in the cowboy's town as her chance to reinvent herself, so she becomes the person she wished she'd been during those rough times: someone tough and take no shit, always speaking her mind, not being afraid to say "no" or tell someone to fuck off.

And Soap sees through that because he's the same way! Soap just went the opposite direction: charming, funny, lots of smiles and confidence to hide that he's sort of fucked up inside. Soap's deeply serious, he needs validation from the people around him, he's desperate to do good in the world, he's reckless and bull headed, and stubborn as shit, but people don't like that so he becomes someone else. Of course he'd want to chase down the one person that would understand that, that can see through his cocksure layers to the intelligent asshole underneath. In his mind there's no one else he could ever love, that would love him the way Moon can, wholly.

That's not to say they don't have their problems, but I don't think they ever have a genuine argument. They might bicker but it's never genuine, and the times when they hurt each other it's always quick to resolve. Soap trusts that Moon is only trying to protect herself, that she doesn't want to hurt him, she's just scared. Truthfully I think he's a little scared too, scared that his charm doesn't work on her, that she sees him for who he is and still treats him the same way she does everyone, that he feels so strongly about her. I think he's scared of how eagerly he keeps coming back, because he knows once she lets him in he'll never be able to let her go. (and I think Moon knows that too, that once Soap has her she'll never want to leave, and what is she supposed to do if he doesn't want her anymore?)

#ghoul speaks #x oc #cod x oc #oc: moon #john soap mactavish x oc #john soap mactavish #long post #I'm so sorry that happened to you my love #an unfortunately common experience but a cruel one none the less #I love writing confident readers because I'm not terribly confident #honestly I relate to Moon and Witch more than anyone #these sorts of wounds leave lasting scars #but I hope you're in a place of healing now

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chvnssecret · 2 years

Text

All for me.

warnings - jealousy/angst - angry sex - payback sex - throat grabbing - mentions of alcohol - possessive dom!minho - reader has a vulva - spanking - edging - head (f receiving) - please leave if you are under 18.

The wine slipped down your throat nicely after yet another swig. Chatting amongst others, you swirled your glass of alcohol in your hand as you watched everyone in the room. Attending events had never been your favourite thing, anxiety took over completely until the wine kicked in. It was Minho’s event, he had a new signing at work and decided to celebrate with around fifty plus people. The hall was beautiful, delicate patterns were sprawled up the walls and the huge chandelier hung ethereally above everyone. An argument between you two had taken place moments before starting the event, he invited his female coworker that so has a thing for him. It knocked you sick; the thought of her being in the same room as you. She’s no competition or threat, but men will go for anything with a pulse.

You decided to plant yourself in the corner of the hall, drinking your wine anxiously whilst watching the busy people chatter away. Every now and then, Minho would walk past without even passing you a glance. You noticed him talking to several people and not even paying attention to you or introducing you to them. You took a seat, the slit in your satin dress rose up your thigh a little more as you downed the rest of your red wine. “Hello, stranger.” A familiar voice came from beside you as the other chair became reserved. “Seungmin? What are you doing here?” You smiled at your ex best friend as you pulled him in for a friendly hug. “I joined the company not too long ago, we were all invited. Why are you alone?” He questioned. You thought it wasn’t obvious that Minho was ignoring you, maybe it was. “I just don’t like crowds.” You lied. Of course, you don’t like crowds, but you’re really hiding away because you don’t know anyone here and your stubborn boyfriend is avoiding you at all costs. “You look nice. You haven’t changed.” Seungmin smiled as he eyed up your scenery. Compliments always made you shy, so a mere slap to your mouth with your hand was enough to make him laugh. “Oh stop it, it’s only been two years.” You laughed at the reminiscence of you two. It’s a shame work took over, otherwise you’d still be as close as you were. Unfortunately he had to work overseas so it definitely drifted the two of you apart. Minho seemed quite pleased; he always accused you two of seeing each other behind his back. That’s the main reason you’re so shocked why he’s here, he’s the last person you thought Minho would invite.

From your peripherals, you saw Minho chatting amongst three people, one of which being the girl that clearly likes him. The way she throws herself on him when she laughs or stares at him lovingly when he talks. A pit in your stomach became warm with jealousy; knowing you needed revenge. Minho was only around six feet away from you and Seungmin so he could probably hear everything if he wanted to. Your plan of action took place, laughing loudly every time Seungmin made a joke. You also decided to make a thing of slapping his leg whenever you laughed and leaning into him slightly. Minho had glanced over a few times, pretending like he doesn’t care but the look in his eyes made you nervous and excited. It seemed he had stopped conversing with them since he had made a B line for you and your old friend.

“Seungmin. How are you finding the event so far?” The fake smile on his face was sickly sweet as you watched wistfully. “It’s all good. I thought I’d come over and keep her company as she looked lonely. We’ve just been reminiscing on the old times.” The poor boy had no idea of Minho’s hatred for him. It’s almost a vendetta. “I’m glad you’re both enjoying yourselves. I’ll leave you to it.” His eyes didn’t lose contact with yours, making you grow more nervous by the minute. You counted down the minutes until the event finished, sighing happily when it finally did. The end result was you and Seungmin laughing and chatting away for the last two hours, it’s amazing how you two never run out of things to talk about.

Taking off your heels was the best feeling ever. You shoved them under the bed lazily as you headed for the bathroom to take your makeup off. The door slammed, making you jump out of your skin slightly. “What the fuck was that?” Minho exclaimed from the bedroom. “What was what?” You played dumb; not knowing which way this would go. “You being all over Seungmin. He was basically drooling on you and you just let him?” He argued. His words didn’t hurt, you knew exactly what you were doing and was glad it worked. “Yeah, totally. That redhead looked nice, I’m sure you’d know all about that.” You fought back unbothered whilst cleaning your mascara off. “Really? She’s a colleague and that’s it. You was rekindling an old flame, don’t turn this around on me.” He spat. You scoffed and didn’t even respond, not even caring the slightest to argue again. “Cat got your tongue, hm?” Minho was now standing behind you in the bathroom, staring at your reflection in the mirror. You went to shove past him to leave, but his hands grabbed your waist tightly. “No. You don’t get to run away that fast, baby.” His whole demeanour changed with a click of his fingers. The grip he had on your waist and the raspiness of his voice made you hot between your legs, rubbing them together for friction. “Let me make you feel good.” He kissed all over the back and side of your neck, tilting your head for better access. Now this is exactly what you wanted. He slipped the spaghetti straps of your dress down your shoulders slightly, caressing your arms and kissing the tip of your shoulders. The dress fell to a pool around your ankles and left you standing there in your matching underwear. “This is what you wanted, hm? Make me jealous so I could fuck some sense into you?” He taunted as you shook your head no. “Don’t lie. This is exactly what you wanted.” He chuckled into your collarbone as he lifted you onto the bathroom sink. Your bra was now removed, with Minho’s big hands massaging and kissing them. Your head rolled back with satisfaction as you moaned his name. “That’s it. That’s the name you want in your mouth.” His pure jealousy turned you on further, spreading your legs and hoping he would get the hint. Another chuckle left his throat at your neediness, squatting slightly to access your heat. He kissed from your ankles, to your calves, to your thighs and finally around your wetness. He avoided the clit, making you yearn for the sensation of his lips on your nub. His lips were gentle all over your folds, kissing your throbbing hole and finally your sensitive clit. You arched your back slightly at the feeling, pushing your pussy further into his face. He gripped your hips again, holding you into place as he licked from the hole up through your folds. His tongue started working around your clit, swirling in circles and sucking on it. Your legs tightened as you became close to your climax, only for Minho to pull away. “What the fuck?” You groaned as he pulled away. “You’ll catch your high on my demand, honey.” He kissed you and you tasted all of your own juices on your tongue as it fought with his. Once he realised your high was long gone, he attached his two middle fingers to your clit, circling the same way his tongue did. It became difficult to kiss back where you became breathless.

“Keep doing that. Feels so good.” You groaned into the kiss as he smiled. He felt you tense like you were going to cum, removing his fingers abruptly and sucking on them. “Minho, please.” You begged. He was irresistible and you couldn’t contain it anymore. “On my command.” He reminded you again, more firmer this time. He went back into his original position, going back to swirling his tongue on every sensitive part. You moaned louder each time, tensing your legs to intensify the orgasm and your body started to shake. Luckily for you, he went through with it this time, still sucking on your clit to ride out your high. You threw your head back in defeat as Minho wiped his mouth on your inner thighs. “I’m not done with you yet.” He stated as he carried you to the bed, dropping you without a care in the world. You bounced and scrambled under the sheets; scared of what he would do next. “You’ve been naughty haven’t you?” He stated as he unbuckled his belt. You nodded your head with puppy dog eyes; which sent him crazy. “I need to remind you who you really love. Who’s pussy this is and who’s person you are.” He slid one finger into your hole unexpectedly, attaching his mouth to yours in another lustful kiss. “Who’s are you?” He spoke between kisses. “Yours. I’m yours Minho.” You were desperate for his length as you spread your legs wider, shoving another one of his fingers into you. He seemed satisfied with your answer when he climbed on top of you, sliding his tip in slightly before the full thing. Almost immediately your eyes rolled to the back of your head as he gripped your throat. “So. Fucking. Beautiful.” He gritted through his teeth with each pump. He gripped both of your hands in one of his, holding them above your head as he leaned down to kiss your breasts. “All mine. All mine forever.” He hissed as his veins popped out of his neck. Sweat beads started dripping onto your chest, sliding down and tickling your skin.

He flipped you over so your ass was now in the air. The feeling of him sliding into you from behind made you arch your back further. His hand spanked your cheek once, making you wince. “I love you. But you’ve been a bad girl.” Another slap. His thighs slapped against yours and your ass lazily as he became more tired from the movement. “I’m gonna cum.” He spat out as his grip on your love handles got tighter. “Me too.” He sped up slightly and his cock started to throb with climax. Beautiful groans left his mouth as he rode out his high, pulling out and letting both of your juices drip onto the sheets. “You’ll think twice before talking to that dickhead again.” He spoke as he got up from the bed and into the shower.

#kpop #skz smut #stray kids #stray kids smut #minho x reader #minho smut #skz lee know #lee minho #kpop smut #hard hours #skz hard hours

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emzalot · 2 years

Text

Thank You for Your Service

Chapter 1

Author’s Note: This is purely self indulgent. I haven’t written anything in well over a year and I know my writing isn’t the best since I’m out of practice, but this fic still makes me happy. I hope someone appreciates it. I just really think the clone troopers deserve all the love and appreciation the galaxy can offer; especially Captain Rex.

Editing Notice: If you missed my ‘Heads Up!’ post, I am turning Little!Y/n into an OC. From now on Little!Y/n will be known as Makéa Valo. I have edited chapter 1 and chapter 2 because of this. If you have any questions please don’t hesitate to pm me or send me an ask!

Pairings: Captain Rex x OC Warnings: None

Next Chapter

~~🖤~~

It was an exciting morning for the 501st. The local school near the GAR base had invited their students to make a card and prepare a gift for the clone troopers. Each class was assigned a battalion and the children got to choose their trooper they wanted to give back to. All the cards and gifts have just arrived on base and the men are overwhelmed with anticipation.

Captain Rex watches as his brothers CT numbers are called, receiving their packages from the delivery man, and enjoying their smiling faces. Rex couldn’t help the excitement rising in his chest. He patiently waits for his turn to be called up. Rex watches as the cart quickly empties and that’s when he realizes his CT number wasn’t going to be called. He didn’t get a gift.

Rex stood by General Skywalker and Commander Tano outside the ship. They were about to leave for their next mission and were waiting for the last few troopers to board so they could leave. Anakin and Ahsoka were discussing the mission with great anticipation, but Rex wasn’t really listening to them. He lets out a sigh, watching is brothers rush around the main hanger, talking about the gifts they received as they make last minute preparations before boarding.

Rex thought back to this morning, remembering how Fives nearly cried when he read the note attached to his gift. He was given a little action figure for good luck and to keep him safe. Echo sat on his bunk reading his letter over and over, cuddling the big pink stuffed bunny a little girl sent him to help him sleep at night. Hardcase was over the moon about the package full of snacks he was sent.

“Rex?”

The captain snaps to attention, finding Ahsoka eyeing him.

“Yes, sir” he answers.

“Are you okay?” she asks.

“I’m perfectly fine, sir,” he reassures her.

Ahsoka frowns a little, but accepts his answer. “Should we get going?”

“Not quite yet!” a familiar voice calls.

The three of them turn and find Senator Amidala approaching with one of her attendee's and a little girl.

Rex frowns, wondering what this was about and why the senator brought a child into the hangar.

“Good morning Senator,” Skywalker greets with a smile. “Come to with us luck on our mission?”

“Not quite,” She smiles at Anakin and continues, “We’re here to see your captain.”

Rex removes his helmet, glancing at Anakin.

“May we have a moment?” Padme asks.

“Of course,” Anakin nods, before ushering Ahsoka onto the ship.

“I apologize for holding you from your duties Captain, but we had to catch you before your battalion departed,” Padme says.

“It’s not a problem, ma’am,” He assures, glancing at the little girl holding onto Padme’s skirt. “What can I do for you?”

“This is Makéa,” Padme rests her hand on the little girl’s shoulder, gently guiding her forward. “She’s part of the class that made gifts for your men and she insisted on giving you your gift in person.”

“My gift?” Rex asks.

“Of course. You didn’t think we’d forget you did you?” Padme says.

Rex blinks at Padme before quickly shifting his gaze to the little girl before him. Rex’s heart tightens in his chest, looking at the adorable blue dress she’s wearing, the blue shoes, and the little blue bows holding her hair out of his face. She’s wearing his battalion’s color. She dressed up just to see him.

“Hi,” She says, smiling sweetly up at him.

Rex couldn’t help mirroring her smile, “Hello Makéa.”

Padme waves over her attendee who hands Makéa the colorful bag.

The bag was half the size of little Makéa. Rex was already overwhelmed by her coming to see him in person, but the size of the gift bag was making him anxious. He kneels down in front of her, setting his helmet on the ground as she sets it down in front of her.

“You didn’t have to do all this,” Rex says, glancing up at Padme.

“But I wanted to meet you,” Makéa says.

His heart squeezes in his chest again. He didn’t know what was wrong with him, but he couldn’t get over how intentional this little girl is being. Why would she want to meet him? Why didn’t she send her gift in with the other students? He’s just one clone out of thousands. He didn’t deserve this kind of special treatment.

“You’re not going to get in trouble for this are you?” She asks.

“Don’t worry about me,” He says.

“Go on, show the captain what you brought him,” Padme says, encouraging Makéa to proceed.

Makéa smiles brightly and reaches into the gift bag. “I brought you my favorite blanky-” she pulls out a folded white blanket with little teddy bears all over it and hands it to him. “-when you get scared or sad just wrap blanky around you and he’ll make you feel better.’

Rex stares at Makéa with wide eyes as he gently takes the soft blanket. He didn’t know what to say.

“Blanky's special that way, so if you take care of him, he’ll take care of you.”

“Y-yes ma’am,” he manages.

Makéa smiles and reaches back into the bag. She pulls out a small brown box and hands it to him. “I made you a bracelet.”

Rex takes the box, noticing the nervousness in her voice. He opens it, finding a white and blue beaded bracelet and lifts it out of the box. He carefully turns it over in his hands, finding words spelled out with the small beads in Aurebesh. One side of the bracelet read, ‘BE SAFE’ and the opposite side, ‘I LOVE YOU’.

Rex’s eyebrows knit together in confusion. “Makéa can I ask you why you added ‘I LOVE YOU’?”

“Because I love you,” she says softly.

“Why?” Rex asks without thinking.

“Because! Because- You- You’re out there in space every day fighting scary droids and bad guys to keep me and so many other people safe from all the bad people! I get to go play with friends, and- and have ice cream, and go to school, and go to bed comfy at night and not be scared something’s going to get me because you- you’re out there fighting! You’re a hero and I love you.”

Rex stares at the little girl before him, who’s twisting the bow on the front of her dress. He’s completely mystified. He never would’ve imagined that him and his brothers would come to means something to people. But to be thought of as heroes? He almost doesn’t want to believe her. It’s too much. She gave him such precious gifts; her favorite blanket to keep him steady, and a bracelet she made for him with two heartfelt messages on it. He’s absolutely blown away.

“Do you not like it?” Makéa asks, her voice a nervous little chirp.

Rex reaches forward, gently gripping her shoulder. “This is the greatest gift I’ve ever been given, ad’ika.”

Makéa meets his gaze and smiles brightly, “Really?”

Rex smiles back, “Really.”

“Do you think it’ll fit?” she asks.

“Let’s find out.”

Rex slips the bracelet onto his wrist. It sits comfortably between the plastoid armor fitted to the back of his gloved hand and his forearm. He flexes his wrist to make sure it doesn’t pinch between the armor or restrict his movement and surprisingly, it doesn’t.

“It fits perfectly,” he says.

“Will you wear it?”

Rex smiles softly at her, “Always.”

Makéa rushes forward and wraps her arms around the captain’s neck, hugging him tightly. Rex tenses, hesitating as his heart pounds in his chest before wrapping his arms around the little girl. He pulls her small form flush against his armored chest and cradles the back of her head. He’s never felt so appreciated by anyone in his life.

“Thank you for your service Mister Rex,” Makéa whispers and kisses his cheek.

#captain rex #captain rex imagine #captain rex x reader #star wars #star wars clone wars #star wars x reader #rex #rex x reader #501st x reader #anakin skywalker #anakin and ahsoka #ashoka tano #clone trooper

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izvmimi · 8 months

Text

cw: angst. unrequited love. love triangle.

You hear her before you see her. Not because her footsteps are loud - in fact she moves light as a feather, as though she's learned to use her Quirk to make herself graceful, quiet - but because you've been hyperaware of her forever it seems, always watching her, always watching her watch him.

A gentle breeze picks up from your high place; you're standing alone on the pier where the water meets the coast. The beach is not that well traveled, but it's likely just because it's sunset. You turn with the breeze, and watch the salty wind sweep her warm chestnut-toned hair. She looks almost surprised as you turn to look at her, as though she didn't actually expect you to be there, even though you called her out to come see you. Then she smiles, and her smile is genuine and you wish yours could be the same.

"___, did you wait long?" she asks. Her voice is as saccharine as her words. You shake your head, trying to keep your heart from racing. You wonder she also makes Izuku's heart race suddenly - similarly, but for a different reason. Perhaps it would have been nicer if she'd come to meet him here, instead of you. You would have liked that.

Perhaps in another life.

"Is everything okay?"

You nod, but you haven't figured out how to use your voice yet. Words stick in your throat, and she approaches you warily, her shoulder brushing against yours as she assumes the same position you are, leaning against the railing looking out against the sea. She's warm whereas you probably are cold as ice.

You clear your throat.

"Thank you for coming," you say, in a voice small enough to be a whisper. Ochaco doesn't turn but she nods as well. She knows whatever you have to say to her is serious, or at least as serious as rivals in love can be. But you're adults now, and even if you haven't grown out of your crushes, you know better than to fight over men. In fact, that's why you're here today, to yield.

"Of course," she answers.

You rub your nose reflexively, then clear your throat again. Maybe you're developing a cold, if the idea of doing this isn't what makes you feel sick.

"How was your day?" you ask.

You should really be cutting to the chase. Ochaco turns and gives you a sympathetic look.

"Good. You saw that we helped out with the library that reopened down in ____."

'We' is her and Shoto and Iida and Izuku.

You nod. You saw all the pictures, saw how Izuku followed her like a loving, loyal shadow, saw how they looked good together, like they were already a couple, like they already belonged.

"Did you have a good day?" she asks politely. As she speaks, she aims to tuck her hair behind her ear, the action makes the sleeve of her cardigan brush against your shoulder. You would recoil from the touch but you're already backing down in other ways, so why bother here?

"Great."

As good as it can be when you've decided to give up on love.

Something about that thought makes you laugh and a giggle escapes. Ochaco gives you a look that asks what's so funny and you clear your throat. It's time to talk.

"I know we haven't been the best of friends all this time," you admit. Ochaco pauses, then nods slowly, still unsure of your intentions. You don't blame her.

In a small voice, she replies, "I get why."

You snort again and she smiles too, and you wish she wouldn't smile too but you're both laughing now and with one hand you rub your face and laugh even louder, and suddenly you're crying.

Crying, real tears streaming down your cheeks, and Ochaco is alarmed, and her sweet eyes run over yours and her kind voice asks you if you're okay, and her gentle hand is on your shoulder and you want to swat her away but you try to keep it together, rubbing the stubborn wetness from your eyes.

"I don't deserve your kindness, Uraraka."

Her hand stills and lightens, but doesn't let go.

"I'm not that kind," she whispers. You laugh and shrug her off finally.

"I don't want to fight with you today, I just..." you sigh, the words catching in your throat. Here you are, crying over a boy. One you couldn't admit to yourself for the longest time that you wanted, one that won you over so easily despite your best attempts, and the one who won't choose you, but rather the picture of the innocent feminine, the ideal female Hero, Japan's Sweetheart. And despite this, you can't even win gracefully, rather you are here crying and somehow still losing.

Aren't you something?

You sink and Ochaco sinks with you. You don't say another word for a few moments, long enough that the wind picks up and howls your defeat.

"I'm sorry."

She knows what you called her here for, and you both know what will happen when you part ways here. You'll cut ties with Izuku and he'll pursue her the way he has always wanted to.

She has nothing to be sorry for, and you have nothing to answer, because it's not okay.

#izuku x reader #izuku midoriya x reader #izuku x reader x ochaco #daydreams: bnha #thoughts: izuku #mimi’s notes

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athenasgotu · 2 months

Text

title: forbidden love. (part 3)

pairings: knight!ellie williams x female!reader

plot: ellie is one of the best knights in the whole kingdom, the first female one as well. you, the perfect princess. your mother has no clue you have a crush on ellie. but, your marriage is assigned. you couldn't get what you wanted.

warnings: eventual smut, little bit of angst, feeling unwanted, homophobia, negative thoughts, swearing, sexual desires

a/n: this chapter does have just like the smallest bit of smut. chapter 4 will most likely have smut. now, i don't usually write smut so bear with me 😭.

minors dni!

part 1 & part 2

MEN DNI❗❗

≪•◦ ❈ ◦•≫

why did blair have to see this? she's going to tell mom for sure.. oh my god. my arrangement? what will happen to ellie? to me? you sigh and let go of ellie.

"blair.." you mumble. blair looks at you and ellie in complete shock. she never expected such disobedience from you. you knew the guidelines, and you broke them? out of all people. blair clutches the top of her gown and walks to you and ellie.

"sister.. you know better." blair looks at you. ellie was embarrassed and rubbed the back of her neck. you looked down feeling ashamed for your actions. you should've never fallen in love with her. why couldn't i just be normal? why does it have to be like this? your thoughts spiraled. you almost were completely distracted that your sister had to nudge your arm.

you jumped a bit, realizing you zoned out. "please.. don't tell anyone." you take your sister's hands and grasp on them tightly, begging her to keep this secret. if anyone knew, you'd be banished. ellie on the other hand.. executed. you couldn't let that happen to her. she was all you had, being forced to leave your home wasn't something you wanted either. why can't things just go back to how they were before? you and ellie, simple childhood friends. playing in the royal garden every once in a while. she'd talk about her training and show you her skills. but even before.. it was never "normal" you loved her, just didn't know it yet. why did you have to be like this?

"i.. i can't promise you-" you immediately cut your sister off. "i could be banished! do you really want that?" you were fed up with blair at this point. did she really want you to be cast away? thrown to the enchanted forest for good?

she lets go of her hands and sighs. "of course not," she turns around and was just about to walk away. right when you think she's done, she continued. "i have to follow the rules and so do you. i don't want you to end up like, him." she walks away, you hear her heels click-clack on the floor. ellie turns to face you, seeing the worry on your face.

"i'm sorry." she says. why was ellie saying sorry? she didn't do anything wrong. this is all your fault. if you didn't fall in love or be into girls.. everything would be normal. you'd be normal. "don't apologize." you say quietly. "you have absolutely nothing to apologize for. this one is on me." you grasp onto your dress and walk off. suddenly, ellie grabs your arm.

"let's go to my room, ok?" she says with a reassuring smile. god, that smile. who could say no to that? being in a room alone with her is probably all you need right now. you nod, letting her guide there.

・❥・

you wore ellie's clothes. her oversized grudge band shirt and a pair of flannel pants. pretty comfy than your dress. you laid down on the bed and she sat next to you. she gently rubbed your thigh. her touch was immaculate. her rough hands on your soft legs. it felt so nice. you feel her hand glide up to your waist, gently squeezing it. you felt a sort of arousal from this. wanting more. knowing ellie, she doesn't back down. she gets more aggressive as time goes on. this was just the beginning. the squeezing gets harder. she leans closer to you. "is this okay?" she whispered right into your ear. her hot breath on your neck. god. you nod. "yes- it is." ellie smirked at your nervousness. it was cute to her. just when was about to put her lips against yours, a sudden knock occurs.

ellie quickly moved away from you and yelled out. "who is it?" your heart was beating loud. please.. don't ruin this moment. "its the queen." fuck. your mom, of course. ellie puts the covers over you and gets out of the bed to open the door. "yes? what do you need, your majesty?" ellie asked. the queen looks down at ellie. "is my daughter in here?" ellie rubs her nose, it was a habit of hers. a cute one at that. "uh, blair?" the queen smiles a little and shakes her head. "don't act inarticulate. y/n, obviously." her big words confuse ellie in a way. ellie's usual language was just swear words. "ah- well, no." ellie smiles nervously. the queen looks away for a moment. "you certain?" she says again. ellie nods. "certain indeed!" ellie clears her throat, trying not to act so "enthusiastic". the queen nods and takes a step back. "very well then. sleep well, knight." the queen walks away and ellie shuts the door.

you uncover yourself and look at ellie. ellie sighs in relief. she walks back into the bed and lays down. she smirked again. that damn smirk. she patted on her legs. "c'mere." she said. you crawled over and go on top of her, ellie held your thighs down so you could straddle on her.

"now, where were we?"

#ellie williams #fanfic #lesbian #wlw #tlou2 #lgbtq #angst #princess x knight #smut #female!reader

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kelyon · 3 months

Text

Courtship 5: Outfit

Lacey figures out what she's going to wear on her date

Read on AO3

The pile of clothes covered Lacey’s twin bed. She’d spent the better part of an hour matching blouses with slacks with sweaters in a vain attempt to find the magic combination that would make her look less like the president of the student council and more like Mr. Gold’s perfect slut.

Nothing worked. So far, her best options were to wear her summer sundress in the middle of winter with no coat, or to take a pair of scissors to the long black skirt she had worn to her mother’s funeral. That last one might have been an option, if she had a sewing machine like Mara. But she didn’t, and showing up at Mr. Gold’s house wearing unhemmed rags was probably as bad an idea as showing up wearing pants. If she had a sleeveless top, she might consider wearing the skirt as it was. She could try to go for a sort of hippy, Bohemian look. But the most revealing blouse Lacey French owned had puffed-up sleeves, like a fucking five-year-old.

Groaning, she fell backwards onto the pile. Some of this stuff she had got in middle school. The fact that they still fit her had been an advantage every time she’d decided to spend her limited funds on books instead of clothes, but it also meant that Lacey had never aged up her personal style. She didn’t have anything that made her look or feel like an adult.

The purple-blue dress shimmered in her dirty clothes hamper. She had jumped the gun by wearing her only sexy outfit on her first date with Mr. Gold. She had set the bar too high. Now he would have expectations of how Miss French liked to dress. More than that, Mr. Gold in his suits had standards. If she met him looking like a mess, he’d drive off and leave her on the curb.

At least he didn’t seem to mind if she left him looking like a mess. He hadn’t minded bringing her home with a wrinkled skirt and no stockings or underwear. She wanted that to happen again, but before it could, Lacey had to look presentable. None of her clothes were cutting it. She had to take action.

She pulled a white button-up off the pile and rubbed a smear of foundation over her hickey. Then she went downstairs into the shop. Dad was sitting by the cash register, looking through a faded design book.

Mom had known all the designs for bouquets and arrangements by heart, but Dad always needed to double check with the book.

“Anything happen today?” Lacey asked.

He shook his head, didn’t look up.

“We should call up everyone who ordered from us last year and remind them that V-day is in less than three weeks.”

“They know,” he grumbled. “This time of year, no one has any money. The men at Fish King will get paid on Friday, that’s when the orders will start. But they won’t really pick up until the next payday, the eleventh.”

He was right. It happened like that every year. All the orders came in at the very last minute. Valentine’s Day weekend was two solid days of constant work getting everything put together.

And it was too far away to do Lacey any good.

“So I’m guessing this is not a good time to discuss the subject of me ever getting paid for the hours I put in?”

Her father looked at her like she had just told an offensive joke that wasn’t even funny. Had his eyes always been so bloodshot? Had he always looked like a sad cartoon dog?

“You keep your tips.” He looked down at the book again. “You have money when the store has money, when we’re not racking up daily fees from that bastard Gold.”

“Yeah, I figured.” Lacey rubbed her hands on her jeans. “Just thought I’d ask.”

Of course Dad didn’t have any money to give her. That was their whole problem. Game of Thorns was a family business, the only income any of them had. For as long as she’d worked in the store, her pay had come in the form of food and shelter. Her reward for helping keep the place open was that it stayed open. It might not have been unreasonable to ask for more, but she knew it was unattainable.

“Ask again when Valentine’s is over,” Dad said. “We get out of this hole… I’ll try to make something work.”

She’d heard that before. Her father always had all kinds of plans and dreams for when things got better. Not that things ever did get better. Not that they ever would. The only thing worse than knowing that fact would be admitting it. So Lacey gave her father a tight smile and pretended she believed him, just like she always did.

****

She made her way over to Marine Automotive, where her Uncle Manny was locking the front doors from the outside. When he saw her loitering, he beamed.

“Hey! There’s my favorite niece!”

Uncle Manny looked like Dad if nothing bad had ever happened to him. He had the same height and stocky build. He had the same curly hair that was also the bane of Lacey’s existence. But where Moe French was loud when he was angry, Manny French was loud when he was happy--and he was always loud. He wrapped Lacey up in a bear hug.

“How you doing, Ace? What brings you by?”

She cut to the chase. “Are you going to the Rabbit Hole tonight?”

Her uncle wasn’t a huge drinker, but he was the only person Lacey knew who regularly went to Storybrooke's only bar.

“I wasn’t planning on it. They’re aren’t any games tonight. But I take it you need an escort?”

Lacey raised her shoulders in a half-apology. “They won’t let me in without a parent-slash-guardian.”

“Ah, to be young again!” Uncle Manny wrapped one arm around her. “You’ll miss it one of these days, I promise you. But yeah, we can have a night on the town. I’ll even buy you a Shirley Temple.”

“Oh come on,” she gave him a playful nudge. “I am an adult, even if I can’t drink. I should at least get a Coke and Coke.”

“Sounds like a plan.”

****

The Rabbit Hole was dead. Between the lack of sports on TV and the town-wide lack of money until payday, most people were staying home. The only ones here were people like Leroy Miner, people who had nowhere else to go. Like the old song said, sharing a drink they called loneliness was better than drinking alone.

Undeterred, Lacey took her uncle-approved non-alcoholic beverage over to the pool table by the fireplace. She took off her hoodie and unbuttoned her blouse a little. This whole thing was a risky move, but it was the best plan she had. Hustling pool paid off more often than it didn’t.

Eyeing the room, she bent over the pool table, just far enough to get a little attention. She lined up a shot and missed on purpose.

“Oh crap!” she said too loudly. “Must not be my night.”

After ten minutes of staged failure, Lacey let herself land a shot. She squealed when the ball went into the pocket. The sound made people’s heads turn, and she treated them all to a too-wide, too-apologetic smile.

Only one person smiled back. Keith Sherwood turned on his bar stool to watch her. Lacey tried to remember her other encounters with Keith. Did he usually stare more at her ass or her boobs? For safety’s sake, she did both. She leaned far enough over the table that Keith could look down her cleavage, then moved around to the other side for the next shot. She stuck her ass in the air, practically humping the felt to keep his attention.

“Boys always make it look so easy,” she pouted after another ball just barely missed the pocket.

When Keith began to walk over to her, she turned her back to him. That way she could pretend to be surprised by his arrival. With careful concentration, Lacey managed to get a ball a full foot away from what anyone watching would have assumed was her target. It was actually harder to be bad on purpose, but it paid off.

“You having fun, sweet thing?” Keith leaned against the pool table, beer in hand, right in front of her.

Lacey giggled. “It’d be more fun if I had someone to play with.”

Keith chuckled. A lock of his hair fell down into his eyes. “I bet it would be. You had a lot of fun playing with me last time, didn’t you?”

How much money had she taken from Keith the last time she had tried this? Sometimes she got cocky and her marks got mad about being taken. Lacey couldn’t remember if she had ever crowed about fleecing Keith. Unfortunately, he probably did.

She fluttered her eyelashes. “It was a lot of fun,” she cooed. “I think I got lucky that night.”

“I bet you’re gonna get lucky again.” He was standing too close to her. “I bet your luck will get better and better all night, especially when we start playing double or nothing.”

Crap. She had definitely rubbed Keith’s face in it last time. Now he was wise to her. That was the problem with a small town. Oh well, at least she’d tried.

“So is that a bet?” she said in her real voice. “Do you wanna put money down on whether or not I’m actually hustling you? Cuz I’ll take you up on that one.”

Keith shook his head. He put his hand down on top of hers on the edge of the pool table. He was still smiling.

“You know there’s another game we can play together. It’s a lot more fun than pool.”

Ugh.

Lacey backed away. “It might be fun for you, but I don’t think I’d get much out of it.”

He followed her. “How do you know? Maybe it’d be more fun if you hustled me. That’d make things interesting, wouldn’t it? Twenty bucks says I can make you see heaven.”

She snorted. “Did you just say you’ll pay to screw me?”

Keith kept smiling. “You were gonna screw me all over this table and take my money anyway. I like my version better.”

Lacey’s blood suddenly went cold. This wasn’t funny anymore. It wasn’t a game. This asshole would seriously give her money if she went home with him. It would be so easy to go along with it. Twenty dollars for two orgasms--his would be real, hers would be fake.

Would that be enough to buy a new skirt? Was she seriously fucking considering this?

She clenched her jaw.

“I’m not a fucking hooker, Keith.”

He raised his arms in a pacifying gesture. “No harm, no foul,” he said. “I just don’t see how it’s any different from taking a girl to dinner first. Man pays for sex either way.”

Turning away, she slid her pool cue back on the rack.

“You’re a pig.”

“Go ahead, darlin’, keep talking dirty. See what happens.”

Lacey kept her head held high as she went back to the bar where her uncle was nursing a beer.

“I need to get out of here,” she told him.

“Sounds good.” Uncle Manny took out his wallet and tossed a few crumpled fives onto the bar. “I’ll walk you home.”

****

Outside, Lacey pulled her arms out of the sleeves of her hoodie and hugged her arms over her chest. This stupid button down was too frumpy to make her sexy and too thin to keep her warm.

“Pool wasn’t any good for you tonight?” Uncle Manny asked casually.

“No,” she admitted. “Fricking Keith threw me off my game.”

“What do you need money for anyway? That dad of yours not feeding you?”

“I need money cuz I don’t have any.” Lacey kicked at a chunk of dirty snow. “Nobody does.”

“I’ve got a little, for the smartest kid in Storybrooke.” He stopped walking and turned to face her. “You wanna tell me what it’s for?”

Lacey bit the inside of her mouth. She didn’t want to lie to her uncle, but she sure as hell didn’t want to tell him the truth. She walked in silence for a minute. He stayed with her. Finally, she said it.

“I wanna get some new clothes.”

“Like a real coat?”

She shrugged. “I mean, maybe. I could. If I had enough.”

“And this is a sudden yearning that couldn’t wait?”

She shrugged again. There was nothing like being around a parent-slash-guardian to make her feel like a complete child.

“Ace, what’s going on?”

She took a breath. “I… don’t want to tell you.”

He put his hand on her shoulder. “Lacey French, if you’re doing things you don’t want people to know about, then you shouldn’t do them.”

“It’s nothing bad!” Lacey pushed him away. “It’s just… personal.”

“That’s not reassuring,” he said. “What’s going on? What do you need money for?”

“I told you, to buy clothes!”

“Clothes for what? You can tell me, Lacey. I’ll help you out if you’re honest.”

“I just want to look nice on a date!” She shrieked the words out into the night. They hung in the air with the cloud of her breath.

Uncle Manny looked at her, confused and sympathetic at the same time. Eventually, he broke out into a broad smile.

“But that’s great, honey! You should go on dates. Why-- why didn’t you say so to begin with?”

She pulled her hands up through the neck hole of her hoodie to rub her face.

“I’m… It’s because of who I’m going out with.”

Uncle Manny scoffed and put his arm around her as they walked. “You shouldn’t be ashamed of dating someone. Unless it’s someone you should be ashamed of, but then you just don’t date them. It’s not a girl, is it?”

Lacey shook her head, to which Uncle Manny nodded.

“Not that there’s anything wrong with that, not in this modern world. You know I’m with you no matter what.”

She nodded.

“And of course, no boy is ever going to be good enough for you. But as long as he’s not married, or some kind of asshole like that bastard Gold, there’s no reason to sneak around like--Lacey?”

She had stopped in her tracks. She looked up at her uncle and chewed on her lower lip.

Realization dawned. Uncle Manny let out a long breath.

“Lace.” His voice was rough. “Tell me you’re dating a married man.”

Lips pressed together, she shook her head. “Don’t tell anyone.”

Standing in place, Uncle Manny stomped his work boots onto the sidewalk. The intent seemed to be half to warm his feet and half to cool his head.

“Gold,” he whispered. He pointed in the direction of Mr. Gold’s pawn shop. “That Gold? The guy that has every working person in Storybrooke by balls? The guy who’s practically the reason all of us are living paycheck to paycheck? You’re going on dates with him?”

She shrugged. “It’s only been one date so far, but he asked me to come to his house on Friday.”

“And you said yes? What, does he have something on you? Is that why you need money?”

“No!” Lacey insisted. “I was telling the truth! I just need clothes that are good enough for him.”

“‘Good enough for him?’ He’s not good enough for you, Lacey! That man is a scourge. He’s a parasite. He’s--he’s old enough to be your father!”

“If he was my father, I wouldn’t be in this situation. I’d actually have a good life.”

“You have a good life.” Uncle Manny wasn’t angry anymore. Or if he was, his anger had become still and stern. “Your parents worked every day to give you a good life.”

“And where did it get them?” Lacey snapped. “Where did it get me? Yes, we work hard, but our only reward is getting to work even harder. And I’m so tired.” Her face was hot. God, she was sniffling. “Being with Mr. Gold feels like a break, and that’s all I want anymore. Just a freaking break.”

Uncle Manny’s arms were around her. He pulled her against his coveralls that smelled like motor oil and sweat. He squeezed her tight and patted her back as she tried to stop crying.

“Sorry,” she sniffed when they broke apart.

“Hey,” he tilted her chin up and looked her in the eye. “Love means never having to say you’re sorry.”

Despite her tears, Lacey laughed. It was an old joke for them. She knew what her next line had to be: “That’s the dumbest thing I ever heard.”

He hugged her again, kissed the top of her head. They didn’t talk until they were in front of Game of Thorns.

“I’d stay for dinner, but I’ve had Moe’s cooking before.”

She snorted at another joke she’d heard a thousand times, then she turned serious. “Um. You’re not going to tell anybody, are you?”

“About your…” he searched for the words, then shrugged, “love life?”

“Yeah. You know my dad will blow a gasket if he finds out I’m even talking to Mr. Gold, let alone--”

“Yeah, I know.” Uncle Manny cut her off. Clearly, he didn’t want to hear what she was doing with Mr. Gold.

“So, please don’t tell him? Promise?”

Her uncle sucked his teeth and slowly shook his head in silence. It took a long minute before he looked at her again.

“Okay,” he said. “You’re an adult. You know your own mind, you can make your own decisions. It’s just--be smart, okay? You are an adult, but you’re also our little girl. Me, your dad, your mom, rest her soul--we don’t want to see you get hurt.”

“I promise I won’t get hurt, if you promise not to blab my business all over town.”

“Aright,” he sighed. He pulled her in for a tight hug. “I promise. Just--please, take care of yourself.”

She squeezed her uncle, then headed for the door. “That’s exactly what I’m doing.”

****

Lacey spent the entire working day on Thursday psychically willing the phone to ring with orders, preferably orders that had to be filled as soon as possible. Doing a rush job would give them an excuse to charge extra. She wouldn’t wish a funeral on anyone, but wouldn’t this be a great weekend for an impromptu wedding? So many of Lacey’s problems would be solved if just one panicked bride would come in and beg them to fill Dodci’s Dance Hall with centerpieces and garlands, not to mention all the bouquets and boutonnieres and flowers for the church too. Or maybe someone important could get sick and everyone in Storybrooke would send flowers to the hospital. Wasn’t there anyone in Storybrooke who was celebrating anything? Did people not have birthdays in late January? There were so many reasons people could need flowers. But this wasn’t a day when people did.

Hustling at the Rabbit Hole wasn’t an option anymore. If this were any other occasion, she would borrow a skirt from Mara or Janine, but that didn’t seem like a possibility. They wouldn’t take the news of her going on a date with Mr. Gold any better than Uncle Manny had. Mara’s store, where she also lived, was rented from Mr. Gold, and Janine had taken out a loan to pay for her beautician supplies. Both of them--really everyone in Storybrooke--saw him as the enemy. As far as they cared to think about it, he was the reason they were poor. If Lacey told her friends how much she wanted to be around him, they would think she was crazy, or morally degenerate.

Maybe she was.

Or maybe they were wrong. Had her friends ever eaten at Bella Notte? Had they ever worn a dress that made them feel like sex on two legs? Had they ever watched a hapless waiter get strong-armed into breaking a stupid law for them? Had they ever been inside Mr. Gold’s house? Had they ever taken clothes off just because a man had asked them to? Had they ever known the thrill of promising to do whatever another person told them to do? Had they ever known the peace of being an object, of kneeling silently at someone’s feet?

Could they even understand why that was something anyone would want? Let alone that it was something Lacey craved in a place deeper than her bones? Some dark, hidden part of her soul wanted Mr. Gold, like she had never wanted anything else.

And not having enough money to buy a stupid fucking skirt might keep her away from him forever. She could not abide that thought.

When Friday was another dud--a few orders came in, but they wouldn’t pay until delivery--Lacey knew that she was out of options. Since Mr. Gold would be picking her up tonight at eight, she was also out of time. So she did what everyone in Storybrooke did when they had nowhere else to go.

She went to the pawn shop.

****

Lacey had always been intrigued by the phrasing of Mr. Gold’s store. The sign said Mr. Gold Pawnbroker and Antiquities Dealer. Most stores advertised the goods sold inside, but Mr. Gold advertised himself. This was who he was, this was what he did. No one came to this store because they needed things, they came because they needed what only he could offer them. Usually, they needed it enough to pay whatever price he set.

When it came down to it, Lacey really wasn’t that different from any other desperate soul who came to Mr. Gold. The only difference was what she wanted.

It was three in the afternoon. Not technically her lunch break, but it wasn’t like she was getting paid to stick around the flower shop. Lacey changed into some gray dress pants and covered her work shirt with her least-frumpy cardigan. She stuffed her purse full of old toys and oddities that might--cumulatively, optimistically--be worth about ten dollars. She yelled at Dad that she was going out for a minute and then walked over to Mr. Gold’s.

The bell rang over her head when she walked through the front door. Mr. Gold was behind the counter, writing something in a ledger. He looked up at the sound and gave the slightest grin when he saw that it was her.

“Miss French,” he said, with just a touch of warmth. “To what do I owe the pleasure?”

Lacey bit her lip, but forced herself to stay cool. She looked around at the shelves and display cases, slowly making her way forward. Another time, she would have marveled at the art and jewelry and historic do-dads, but now she slunk past them.

“I…” she dragged out the word, unsure of what she was saying as she said it, “was wondering… if you have any clothes for sale.”

Mr. Gold raised his eyebrows. “Clothes?”

“Yeah.” She stopped in front of a spinning rack of necklaces. She couldn’t look at him. “You know, like vintage stuff?”

He walked over to her, behind the display case. “I’ve got some historic naval uniforms, but nothing that would suit you.”

He was in front of her now, so they were separated by nothing but two feet of glass and gadgets. She didn’t raise her head. Some of these necklaces were really pretty. One gold chain with a mother-of-pearl pendant spoke to her for some reason.

“What do you need, Miss French?”

His voice was gentle, coaxing. He understood how much she hated what she was doing. He probably talked to a lot of people who were feeling what she was feeling. At least he didn’t seem to be enjoying her discomfort.

Lacey took a breath, and looked up at him.

“I need a skirt,” she admitted. “I don’t have anything to wear on our date tonight.”

He blinked. Then his face grew infinitesimally softer.

“I see,” he said.

“I brought some stuff.” She set her purse on the counter, began to pull out the junk she’d brought from home. “I thought I might--”

“Please,” he held up a hand. “You don’t need to do that. I’m more than happy to assist you, Miss French.” He turned away from her, went back over to his antique cash register.

“I can pay you back…”

“Oh you will,” he grinned. He took a bill out of the cash register and set it on the counter. Lacey came closer and saw that it was a fifty. “Will this be enough?”

She fought the urge to snatch the money and run all the way to Modern Fashions. It was the same feeling she’d had when he’d given her the money to tip that stupid waiter. The thrill, the rush, of having cash and knowing she could do anything with it. Fifty dollars was more than she had spent on clothes in the past year. Fifty dollars could cover the bill at Granny’s for her whole family--or at least for Janine and Mara to have real lunches.

Fifty dollars was more than twice what Keith had offered her to have sex with him.

Lacey pulled her hands back. She dug her fingernails into her palms.

“I… I shouldn’t accept this,” she said.

“Why not?” Mr. Gold asked, unperturbed. “Are you worried I’ll take advantage of you? Wouldn’t you say that ship has sailed, Miss French?”

She looked down at the dirt-stained sneakers she wore for work. In a resigned whisper, she told Mr. Gold the same thing she said to Keith at the Rabbit Hole.

“I’m not a hooker.”

“Of course not.” Mr. Gold’s voice was smooth and confident. He came out from behind the counter to stand in front of her. Slowly, he raised his hand to cup her cheek, subtly forcing her to look at him. “You’re a woman who knows what she wants and who will do whatever she needs to do to make it happen.”

Lacey’s breath shook. Her eyes were hot and she was trembling.

“What do you want?” he asked her. He really was being very patient.

“I want to go on another date with you, Mr. Gold.”

“And what do you need to do in order to make that happen?”

“I need--” she stopped. I need a skirt wasn’t the right answer. Mr. Gold had asked her what she needed to do. “I need to get some money, Mr. Gold.”

“Ask me for it.” He gave the order like it was a caress. “Ask me for the money and I’ll give it to you, Miss French.”

This wasn’t like with Keith. This wasn’t being so desperate for money that she’d have sex with a stranger. This was being so desperate for sex that she’d take money to make sure she’d get it. She’d let Mr. Gold pay her like a whore just to make sure he kept treating her like a slut.

She swallowed. She had to swallow a few times before she was brave enough to speak.

“Please, Mr. Gold, will you give me fifty dollars so I can have something suitable to wear for our date tonight?”

“I would be happy too, Miss French.” He lowered his hand from her cheek and picked the bill up off of the counter. Gently, he took her hand by the wrist, placed the fifty on her palm, and closed her fingers over it.

He grinned at her.

“Buy yourself something pretty.”

Lacey clenched her jaw. Now he was enjoying this. She bit back words that would make him take the money back. Instead, she said what she knew he wanted her to say.

“Thank you, Mr. Gold.”

“You’re quite welcome, Miss French.”

He turned around then, went back behind the counter. Lacey understood she was dismissed. Facing the door, she took a breath and checked to make sure none of her tears had spilled out onto her cheeks.

Before she opened the door, Mr. Gold called over to her.

“Miss French,” he said. “If you happen to buy a red skirt and wear nothing underneath it, I will eat your cunt for dessert tonight.”

Lacey’s eyes went wide. Her shock was less for what Mr. Gold had said and more for his nonchalant tone. He was talking about sex in the same way he would talk about running errands.

“Do you understand me, Miss French?”

What about it did he think she didn’t understand? Then Lacey realized she hadn’t answered him. Mr. Gold expected an answer when he spoke to people.

“Yes, Mr. Gold,” she said. Shock had made her voice a little breathy. “Thank you for telling me, Mr. Gold.”

He gave her a nod.

Dazed and excited, Lacey left his shop and made her way down the street to Modern Fashions. She had a red skirt to buy.

#courtship #rumbelle #golden lace #rumbelle fic #golden lace fic

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fantasiesnfairytales · 5 days

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Auctioned off || Open Starter

Mia had been in the same facilty for a good decade it felt like now. So when she was informed that she'd be relocating, it had really thrown her off. She feared the worse, because she knew what the people here thought of her and her kind. For all she knew, relocating could mean an end to her life to them. Or it could have meant a tranfer to a newer facility that maybe had even worse equipment that could be used to test on her. She wasn't sure which of the two sounded worse.

Regardless, the mutant found that cooperating was always the best course of action. She had fought a bit at the beginning of her stay here and the consequences were far worse than some of the testing they'd done to her. Which probably spoke volumes in itself to anyone who'd witnessed that testing. It was late in the evening when two of the guards approached her holding cell. She had been fitted with a collar that counteracted any of her mutant genes. One she'd had on for a while now that they could remotely activate or deactivate when it suited then. Right now the green light was on indicating it was absolutely keeping her abilities at bay. Not surprising to her. They never came into her room when it was deactivated.

She stayed toward the back of the room watching as they pulled out the rope and blindfold. Mia's blue eyes widening with fear. "Blindfold.." she questioned instantly earning herself a glare from those handling the items. "#6570 step forward, slowly, strip out of your robes, and get on your knees, with your hands in front of you" one of the men spoke. They never called her by name, it was too personable. She did as she was told, despite not understanding. Her wrists were tied tightly in front of her, before the blindfold was slipped over her eyes. Before she could attempt to express any concerns or question where she was going, she felt the metal press agaisnt her lips. A gag…she resisted that just a bit before it was tugged in roughly and locked into place.

Where she was led next she wasn't sure, not until she could feed the cool breeze indicating for the first time in years she might be outside? Then the sound of metal door opening and she was pushed inside of what she could only assume was a vehicle. It sounded like someone was on the phone, indicating that she was to be delivered soon.

#c: Mia #open starter #tw: abduction #tw: dark themes #tw: kidnapping #tw: auction

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balladedutempsjadis · 11 months

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I drove 30 minutes each way today to go and see Ponniyin Selvan 2 at the theater closest to me that was still showing it. So this is the sequel to a movie that I didn’t even know about until last Saturday but I’m now OBSESSED (so if you’re a fan and I just friended you that’s why!)

The long drive was soooo worth it though I’m a little ticked off that the manager of the theater was so late to open things up that we missed the first ten minutes of the film (but I know I’ll watch both films again when Amazon gets PS2 in late June so no violence was done ;))

Short version: well worth seeing in the theater and I’m really glad I got the chance. I loved the movie, and couldn’t believe how fast it moved for an-almost 3 hour film. The characters and plot were as engrossing as in the first film and I’m glad I was mostly unspoiled except by history (spoilers below) because there were moments of intense suspense. I’m sad that it’s not a trilogy because I really wanted to spend even MORE TIME in this world with these people.

Longer version (with SPOILERS):

1. I knew Aditha Karikalan would die at some point because he never became a Chola king. And it was probably for the best that he didn’t rule the Cholas lands because I think he would not have made a good king, being so ruled by his passions. At least a few courses in anger management would have helped probably. But … Vikram was really stunning in the role of a man who loathes himself for what he’s become and is dying of guilt and shame long before he actually dies. Just ... I need to watch both movies again and see how his character develops from the flashbacks to the bitter husk of a man he is.

I still can’t figure out one thing, which is why he agreed to basically give up the kingdom for Madhurantakan without taking account the interests of his brother Arunmozhi Varman, whom he very demonstrably cared for deeply. (He was destroyed by the thought that his younger brother had drowned, and the only time we've seen present Aditya happy what when Nambi told him that Arunmozhi was alive.) Was it just because he already knew he was either going to convince Nandini to run away with him or more likely let her kill him and other people would be sorting out that mess anyway? Another reason that he wouldn’t have made a good king - running off with another dude's wife - but which made him such a fascinating and complex character and I keep thinking about how both Nandini and Aditha were destroyed by his family's actions. *sob* (Although, Arunmozhi also gave up a crown twice - the one the monks offered him in Sri Lanka and the one his father gave him at the end - so maybe giving up kingdoms just runs in the family. I'm #TeamQueenKundavai TBQH :P)

2. That brings me to Nandini. I felt like she really did love Aditha Karikalan but she also did love power and being a Queen (because of the theater malfunction I only got to see the very end of the flashbacks of young Aditha and young Nandini at the beginning of the movie so I may have a clearer understanding that this is not what she's about once I see that.) Aditha says "lies!" when she says she wants power, and riches, and a throne, but I think it's not *entirely* lies? She was powerless when the Cholas deported her, and powerless to stop Aditha from killing the man she thought of as a father (who actually WAS her father), so I can certainly understand why part of her longed for the power to protect herself from heartbreak and destitution and why that part of her was willing to use her beauty to manipulate men (like Parthibendran, more on him later.) Her vengeance and hatred hollowed out her character just as much as guilt and anger did to Aditha, but she doesn't murder Vanthiyadevan (OMG HOW DO YOU SPELL THAT?) when she has the chance even though she knows he's going to do everything to spoil her plans. So there's still something in her that isn't completely spoiled, and I ended up just feeling incredibly awful for her (and even more awful for her mother!)

She is so damn beautiful! (One slight thing that I WISH they had done was give the young woman who played young Nandini (wonderfully) some hazel contact lenses so I'd wouldn't mentally have to color her eyes :P)

3. Next we come to Vandiyadevan, who was just ... perfect? I loved him. He was like an ancient Tamil D'Artagnan (and that would make Aditha Karikalan Athos and Nandini Milady, I guess? And Nambi is Porthos and Kundavai is Aramis, the clever one.) Anyway, he was great, smart, quick-thinking, a great warrior, but also not at all dumb. I really liked him and enjoyed all of his scenes. And I found out from history that the historical character did get to marry Kundavai so YAY! He was just a nice bright spirit without a ton of angst.

4. And now we come to the titular character, Ponniyin Selvan (Ponni's son) himself, Arunmozhi Varman, who eventually becomes Rajaraja Chola. I had never even heard of Jayam Ravi (sorry, this is I think the first Tamil movie I've watched since I was a kid) but he was ABSOLUTELY PERFECT as the young "King of Kings." I think this might have been the most difficult role in the film to pull off, simply because Rajaraja Cholas is so famous and so beloved STILL, a thousand years after his death. It's very rare that I would love the unequivocally good guys in a historical epic or fantasy movie/series but there is something about this character played by this actor that is just extremely charismatic. To start with, he's tall and handsome so that helps. But there's another quality that no one else in this film has, which that he radiates inner calm.

It's not that he doesn't have strong emotions that he shows on his face, because yes absolutely he does, and it's not that he doesn't have much do action-wise because he does, especially in P-S2.

But in the midst of this frenetic action and these tortured characters, Arulmozhi Varman has this quality of stillness at his core. No wonder the Buddhist monks like him so much that that they will put themselves between him and assassins' daggers. (Also did I mention the tall and handsome part?)

Plus, he has that classic "worthy to be a king" thing going because he does not want the throne and that's what makes him worthy. First of all, he refuses the throne of Lanka when he's offered it by the Buddhist monks there, and then, after he's won the battle and broken the rebellion and secured the safety of his family's kingdom, he gives up THAT crown too. WE - the audience - know that Uttama Chola will ultimately die (I think peacefully?) and Arulmozhi will become Rajaraja Chola but HE doesn't know that, and none of the other people, his friends and family, know that either. Like, I'm kind of in awe of the actual historical figure too. The character could have died so many times in these two films, and the historical person, who was a warrior king, could also have died long before he took the throne, so he was FOR REAL making a huge sacrifice. And I think he did it so there would be no divisions that the Cholas' enemies could take advantage of, as there had been for Nandini and the Pandyas to exploit when Maduranthakan decided that yes, he did want to be king and that it wasn’t fair that his brother’s oldest son would be king instead of him. No one living at the end of the film knows that Aditha essentially killed himself, but everyone knows that the plotters were using Maduranthakan as a puppet. (The crown was kind of funny looking so I'm actually glad my boo didn't put it on at the end :P) (Also more on Maduranthakan later.)

Also, how cool is it that in the battle at the end, Arunmozhi comes riding out of the smoke while the Chola anthem plays, just as his brother did in the first scene of the first movie. I love that parallel (and the differences are important too, because Aditha was engaging in a conquest of a neighboring kingdom and Arunmozhi is defending the Chola kingdom.)

Anyway, Ponniyan Selvan lived to become the great Rajaraja Chola, whose reign saw one of the highest points of Indian art (the extraordinary Chola bronzes) and the construction of the great South Indian temple of Brihadeswara in Thanjavur.

The carvings are amazing (look closely at this elephant which is doing something that happens in PS2 :D)

OK, moving on ... though I don't want to ...

5. Kundavai, the third royal sibling, who I also love to BITS. She didn't have as much to do in this film, I thought, and maybe it's because there was more focus on Nandini in this one, but she remained smart and sensible and I love the face-off with her uncle when he brings the Shiva-yogis to make his mother (Kundavai's grandmother) apologize for not putting him on the throne. Kundavai forces him and his rather intimidating crowd of followers to back off with a lot of hard stares (Paddington would be so proud.) And then she has the lovely little scene with Vandiyadevan (I'm still so sorry I don't know how to make this work) and and another gorgeous scene with her brothers at the Buddhist monastery (which, I love the scene but I hate that it’s the ONLY one). I love her, and I think she should have become the queen and my only consolation is that IRL she got to basically shape two great kings of the Chola dynasty, Rajaraja AND his son Rajendra. (And Rajaraja named his daughter after her so he obviously appreciated her a LOT.) Anyway, I love her and would love a series about her (IF ANYONE IS LISTENING.)

Awww! I just want to draw little hearts and flowers around this GIF. I wish we got more of them being adorable and hot together.

6. Everyone else (sorry this is getting super long), including some questions I have.

a. Vanathi: I know I saw some scenes of her and Arulmozhi in one of the song videos hat got cut in the actual film and I just would have liked to know more of her relationship with Kundavai and with Kundavai's brother. They were lovely together, but it just felt like there was a lot of missing stuff. I liked what I saw of her especially the adorable dance in PS1. And she was also related to ... someone? Because she called him "mama" (uncle?) and he seemed to be the commander of Aditha's forces, but then there was another dude at Kadambur who was a relative of the Cholas and the treasurer guy who was married to Nandini but they were not the same person and I thought one of them was Vanathi's uncle. NEEDS MORE BACKSTORY.

b. Poonguzhali (AGAIN I AM SURE I SPELLED THIS WRONG): I REALLY need more backstory on this. When did she meet Ponniyan Selvan? Why did he call her Samudra Kumari? Why did she risk her life for him (I mean, besides being in love with him which checks out because everyone else is :P) and what was the deal with her and the flower man at the temple? I just feel like a lot of stuff was missing that would have helped me understand better what was happening. (Also she was an amazing sailor to have gotten through that storm.)

c. Parthibendran Pallava and his lightning-fast enmity to Vandiyadevan and then his baseless accusation that Arunmozhi Varman had sent Vandiyadevan to murder Aditha Karikalan. I mean, did he even meet either of them? Why did he think Arunmozhi wanted his brother dead? Was it all just from meeting Nandini THAT ONE TIME because bro, you need a slap if that's the case?

d. Madhurantakan - I was screaming at him (in my head) to realize that there would be no coup without bloodshed, GOD OF COURSE SOME OR ALL OF HIS BROTHER'S KIDS AND HIS BROTHER WOULD DIE. And the other kings wanted a puppet on the throne, not a warrior like Aditha or someone as popular as Arunmozhi (also a brave warrior). But finally Madhurantakan learned his lesson before he fully betrayed his kingdom and family and people. However, the bit about how he was administrating the kingdom for 25 years dropped in at the end was a bit sudden and I would have liked to know Arunmozhi’s thought process, even if it was just “hey I just want to go have adventures with Vandiyadevan because it’s super fun.” I would have also liked some evidence of said administration because they kept playing up his devotion to Shiva and not much else (though he clearly had the Shaivite warrior-mendicant vote SOWN UP! But I'm also confused because some - but not all - of those dudes appeared to be Secret Pandya Assassins, like the lady who attacked the Buddhist monastery and forced Arunmozhi to come out and show himself to the people and by people I mean assassins.) So I don't know ... Anyway, glad Madhurantakan came to his senses and did not side with the other kings against his family. While his reward for only being partially a traitor seemed disproportionate, on the other hand, I thought Arulmozhi was also smart to say that his sword and Vandiyadevan's would be backing up Uncle M so no one got any ideas and probably Kundavai would also be advising Uncle M about good administration. :D (It was kind of funny that Arulmozhi had to get the crowd to cheer for his uncle because they were all like *do not want**we want YOU, young victorious prince* but it’s a sign of his charisma that he got them to accept his uncle as king.)

e. The Pandya assassins were a bit reminiscent of Wile E. Coyote tbqh. All their plans kept not working out in spectacular ways. Is there some reason why no one tipped an arrow with poison or put poison in a cup of wine for Aditha who liked his wine or put poison on their swords so even if they nicked Arunmozhi they'd end up killing them? Do you sense a theme here? Was there some reason why the revenge had to involve actual beheading or it didn't count? Honestly, without Nandini they would have failed even more spectacularly. Also, after Nandini killed herself, what happened to the little Pandya boy king - Nandini's half-brother who swore vengeance? (FYI, I read somewhere - wish I could remember where - that Rajaraja Chola hunted down the assassins of his brother even as far as Indonesia.)

f. I was a little confused by all the uncles and grandparents and so on, like the white-haired general was the grandfather of the three Chola siblings, I assume their mother's father?

g. I would have liked some of the storylines more fleshed out (especially Mandakini's because that was very sudden and if she came and gave birth to Nandini in the Chola lands, how did Sundara Chola not know about this and I guess she spent time hanging out so she could save Arunmozhi when he fell in the water at home and abroad? Why did she care for him so much? Because he was like his father? That seems pretty generous. Anyway ...) If there is a director's cut that is five hours long for each film, PLEASE BRING IT ON. I would love to see it.

In conclusion - I LOVED both movies. This feels like a very special and great achievement, and I hope its success leads to more really good directors delving into South Indian history, like that of the Vijaynagara Empire (which is the subject of Salman Rushdie's latest novel which I haven't read yet.)

ETA: THE MUSIC. I loved it. I've been listening to some of it on a constant loop.

I'm now off to read the books and explore the filmography of Vikram, Trisha, Karthi and Jayam Ravi (if there are any films that are really awesome or really awful please let me know in the comments.) I have been meaning to get into South Indian cinema more and this was a great starting point.

#ponniyin selvan #ponniyin selvan 2 #aditha karikalan #kundavai #vandiyathevan #nandini #mani ratnam #a r rahman #tamil cinema #jayam ravi #arulmozhi varman #arulmozhi

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kursed-arcana · 10 months

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Psycho Pass Providence Review

I saw it in theaters and it was even better then I imagined.

Turning Akane into a tragic heroine may have been the best choice for her character after all. Her self sacrifice elevated her character to another level in my eyes.

I have not yet watched season 3 or first Inspector due to patiently waiting for the dub, but knew akane's fate and how it resolves. I went into this movie hoping it would explain how Akane was imprisoned and fearing she would take the fall for Shindo based on the context the film provided, instead I was pleasantly surprised to see our heroine take her fate into her own hands and make a difficult choice. Her self sacrifice was flawless and I was nearly in tears when she broke down. There is even a fantastic parallel between her choice here and Kougami's at the end of one. They both leave each other letters and both call the other an idiot for their decision. I left the theater fully satisfied.

I really appreciate how Kougami and Akane are always on eachothers minds and how their past interactions motivate their present actions even when they're apart. I think they'd make an excellent couple and Kougami being such a stubborn baby and not apologizing to Akane and being shocked when she hung up on him was too funny. I feel like them understanding eachother so well is both a strength and a weakness. It could very well be what keeps a a clear canon paring for them from happening. But I feel like this ending for Akane opens a lot of doors for them going forward. In the eyes of sybil, they're now two of a kind. The power imbalance barrier from their different statuses is now gone! And from what I hear about season 3 and first Inspector, I believe we'll be able to get more content of the two of them working together again in the near future.

On to the rest of the movie and cast.

I can't help but enjoy Mika. I think her character arc in 2 was actually really interesting and a nice contrast to Akane. And seeing her devastation at Akane's actions after she had just tried to save her, really spoke to me. I feel like she's still very much that broken girl from season 1 and Akane's loss probably opened up those wounds again. Her character has a lot more potential than most fans acknowledge.

Gino also has a prominent supporting role in this movie. Whether interacting with Kougami, Akane and Frederica he really shines. He is clearly happy to be with Kougami again, but let's his pride get in the way. But at the end of the day, they are both incredibly loyal to Akane. While Gino protects her as a shield, Kougami fights for her like a sword. It offers a unique dynamic. They essentially have Akane on a pedestal, as does sybil itself, which makes her very public and on purpose fall from grace all the more interesting. What will these two men do now that Akane has made herself a martyr for the justice her ideals strive to protect? I think we all have an idea of where the story goes from here whether we've watched the next material in the timeline already or not.

Finally its worth noting that essentially the entire supporting cast gets a few moments to shine, whether from season 1 or 2, and of course some characters from 3. The cast from 3 may not be the focus this time but they are still present in the background and I believe this movie answers some questions about their pasts.

In closing some stray thoughts.

- I can't help but ship Frederica and Gino now. They had great chemistry and a moment of theirs mirrors and earlier Koihami x Akane ship baiting moment in the movie. Keep yours open for it!

-we lost a good man this go around. His death generally shocked me. Keeping it vague so I don't lessen the impact!

- the music for this movie is A+ however, there is no after credit scene if you dont want to listen to the ending

#psycho pass #providence #shinya kougami #akane x kougami #akane tsunemori #spoilers #review #psycho pass providence #movie review #analysis

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jojikawa · 2 years

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Hi i’d like to request a chamber fic if you’re not too busy! I was thinking something along the lines of the character being really good friends with one of the agents, preferably a flirty one like yoru or phoenix and chamber gets jealous and corners the character to tell her that he likes her and all the flirting is driving him insane? If you want you can even make it so that the flirty agent was being overly flirty just to get under chamber’s nerves because they knew that chamber liked her.

Hello! I would love to write something like this. My favorites to write about is probably Chamber and Yoru. They’re def my type of guy XD Thank you for requesting me!

Vincent was happy. He could feel the pleasant excitement welling up in his stomach as he daydreamed about his favorite person. It was pretty obvious who he had a crush on but the other agents purposefully kept you out of the loop. The reason why was clear as well. Vincent wasn’t known to be the best guy.

His crush was a fan favorite amongst the Protocol due to their looks, personality, and skill. They were originally a weapon from the American military that was lent to team Valorant to extinguish the mirror earth problem. Everyone expected some war machine, modified killer animal hybrid, or some gun-slinging guy with a whole lot of luck but instead…they received a cute, charismatic woman named (y/n) nicknamed (a/n) by Brimstone for a code name.

Vincent originally believed you to be a new receptionist or something. He was a rich, skilled, and entitled man so he was bound to harbor a bit of misogyny. It made seeing you in action much more of a treat. You could kill enemies without breaking a sweat, run at top speeds, and break wind barriers. You were superhuman! All while wearing what you want. There was no need for armor at all. It made him so interested in you.

The rich man just didn’t exactly know how to approach you. You were always so caught up with everyone else because of your popularity. You seemed so sweet and kind, no one wanted him to “corrupt” you. Jett and Neon would always joke about how you needed to be protected from him at all costs because he “clearly just wanted to use you.”

Alas, Vincent’s eye wasn’t the only one you had caught. It was becoming clear that more people were trying to pursue you. Men and women alike. Of course, no girls spoke of their crushes on you but the guys could never keep their mouths shut. So far, he was only ever able to figure out three people. Sova, Phoenix and Yoru.

Sova was more reserved. He knew that he would push his feelings aside and never confess to you. Not worried about him at all. Phoenix? He flirted a lot but he was too goofy for you. You needed a rich, handsome, French marksman to take care of you. Yes, definitely! Yet there was one person with who he couldn’t stop being jealous of.

Yoru.

Vincent just couldn’t understand why at first until he really paid attention to your interests with him. You didn’t roll your eyes or wave him off as you did with Phoenix. You actually gave Yoru your time. It was innocent in your eyes but the Japanese man pestering you thought a lot more of it.

Yoru would puff up his chest, making sure his hair was right before asking you:

“Hey, (y/n), wanna come to the range with me? I want to show you the new ability I just learned.”

Sickening.

But you would say:

“Sure, Yoru, what is it this time?”

How could you? You must’ve had no idea, right? He hated this type of situation. He was seen as shady so if he said anything to you or about you, everyone else would be jumping down his throat. Well, everyone except for Reyna, that is.

The demonic-looking woman seemed to humor Vincent since she had her eye on you as well. As he watched you and Yoru socialize, Reyna approached him. The man hadn’t even noticed she was standing next to him with a grin on her face as he gazed at you.

“You are staring at her, mijo.” She purred, finally getting his attention. This made him laugh, not being started by her presence. “A gentleman does not stare; he admires.” He replied, shifting himself to make the staring less noticeable.

“Admiring with fire in your eyes? I didn’t know someone as bland as you can be so aggressive~” She laughed at his naïveity. “It is too bad that (y/n) is a free spirit. The girl needs more than a boring square.”

Vincent sighed before turning to the woman. “I hope this isn’t your way of siding with the others. Or perhaps, you are jealous?” He smirked back at her but was still unable to get a reaction out of her. “I have no one to be jealous of,” Reyna reassured. “Soon, the apple of our eye will realize that none of you are worth her time. See, look at Yoru.” She then gestured her head to tell Vincent to look. “All men do is talk about themselves. Especially the uninteresting ones…All so boring.”

Without a word, Reyna disappeared before Vincent noticed. She was a little mysterious sometimes but this seemed to be her way of giving a little advice.

You entertained Yoru for a bit as he talked about his new cloning ability. You thought it was pretty cool at first but the conversation was a little long-winded. He hasn’t even shown it to you yet. He only gave scenarios of how it would be useless.

“–So, uh,” You interrupted him mid-sentence. “You’re only able to make your clone walk in one direction so far? Wouldn’t they already know it’s a fake?” You tilted your head in a cute way. He lit up as if he were waiting for you to say something like that.

“Ah! Actually, I have a solution. I walk out with my clone and then they won’t be able to tell.” His face was so red and he wasn’t able to understand how unintelligent he sounded sometimes.

“…but what if they shoot you instead of the clone? What if they shot both?” You placed your thumb and index finger on your chin as you began to think.

Yoru opened his mouth to speak but Chamber came behind you. He placed a hand on your shoulder to grab your attention. The only way he could stand out is if he made some moves, regardless of what others thought about him.

“You don’t mind if I have a word with our teammate, do you?” Chamber asked, towering behind you just as Yoru did in front of you. The rift walking man knitted his eyes together at the French marksman. He knew Chamber had his eyes on you and so did others. No way would he let him have you, but he needed to be respectful to you.

You could tell Yoru was acting a bit jealous just by his expressions. He wasn’t very good at hiding it. Luckily, as a woman, most of this stuff stood out very easily to you.

You smiled at Yoru, causing his eyes to dart from Chamber to you. “We can do some aim training later tonight.” You waved him off but in a sweet way. He huffed, turning around before saying “then don’t forget it.”

Once Yoru was far away enough, you turned to Chamber. He had a smug look on his face. The same one he always wore when he spoke—only to you.

“Good Afternoon, Chamber. What makes you want to see me today?”

This was the perfect time because the two of you were alone now inside of the Gathering Hub. There was no one to interrupt you either. “I want nothing more than to have a small chat with you. It won’t take up any of your time.” The French man verbalized, sending chills down your spine.

“Oh? Okay.”

“You look absolutely stunning, and I don’t mean that in the standard way either. Perhaps, we could get to know each other a little more…personally.” Chamber whispered softly and seductively. This made your eyes widen just a bit.

Ha. He got you! You were all flushed and adorable now.

“You sound just like the others!” You giggled, covering your mouth with your hand just a little.

Um…what?

“I sound like the others? Who do I sound like exactly?” If Chamber wasn’t in your presence he would definitely be choking right now! He observed how your innocent face changed. It went from bright and bubbly to subtle and trivial as you tried to think for a moment.

“Yoru and Phoenix! They say nice things like that all the time. I’m glad I have such a strong friendship with you all. I think you look magnificent! I like your clothing and your glasses.” You giggled even more, unable to contain how happy you were that you were getting to socialize so much!

You didn’t have much time here because once mirror earth was no longer a threat, you would belong to the U.S Military once again. “I didn’t know they thought so highly of you…and were so open about it as well.” The French marksman muttered the last part.

“I’m not used to such attention. Is something wrong, Chamber?” You asked innocently, tilting your head at the man who was visibly reacting to all your words. “No, not at all.” He replied.

“Though, I wonder, what exactly do you plan to do with Yoru later…?” He was genuinely curious if you would ever become more than a friend with the rift walker or anyone else.

You shrugged. “I'm not sure. I assume he just wants me to stroke his ego for his good aim.” Although, your joke didn’t seem to make him laugh. “He probably wants you to stroke something else as well…” Chamber muttered to himself but your genetically enhanced hearing caused you to hear him anyway.

“Huh?!” You perked up, blushing like an idiot. “Oh, come on, Chamber! It’s not like that…” You instinctively grabbed a piece of your hair and twirled it, avoiding eye contact. The marksman smirked. He loved making you flushed. It was so adorable. “Then surely, he wouldn’t mind if I joined you on your adventure?”

“Oh! Sure! I don’t mind you coming.”

“It’s a date then.” Chamber winked at you, making you blush a bit more. He only hoped Yoru didn’t make you blush this much.

Later that day, you went to the range as scheduled to meet Yoru.

Chamber tagged along. When you arrived, Yoru laid eyes on you. He lit up like a Christmas tree. Perhaps, he didn’t expect you to come. Unfortunately, the twinkle in his eye died and his smile faded. There was a particular shadow that towered over you as it followed.

“Hi, Yoru!” You waved to him as you approached him. Yoru didn’t reply. He seemed to be too busy looking through you and at the man behind you. “Bonsoir~”

You saw that Yoru had a ghost in his hand. “Oh! Are we having another shooting competition?” You smiled warmly. “I hope you can finally beat me!” This grabbed Yoru’s attention. He smiled slyly, readying his weapon. “Oh I know I can. And no cheating this time.”

You turned to Chamber. “You want to join? I’m currently undefeated.” You told him. Surely, he couldn’t beat you but he would just like to watch.

“I will have to pass, ma Cherie. Just pretend I am not even here.”

“Okay!”

The shooting target content with Yoru was fun despite you winning again. Chamber expected him to act bratty as usual. It was how he usually behaved whenever he couldn’t come out on top but…that didn’t happen.

Yoru praised you for your skills. Something that was extremely foreign to Chamber but normal to you. Was he always like this to you? He had no idea.

Yoru made a witty remark, taking out his butterfly comb to style his hair. You seemed interested in this. “I’ve always wondered, Yoru, how do you make it come out?”

“Oh, this? It’s pretty easy!” Chamber watched Yoru close the comb and do a cool motion that made the comb show itself again. “Can I try?” You asked, standing at an angle that prevented the marksman from seeing what exactly was happening. He tilted his head outward, looking a bit awkward but he didn’t care.

The man observed your attempts to use the comb. You failed so charmingly, causing any man in the vicinity to give in to their masculine urge to help you.

Yoru chuckled. “Here. Let me show you.” He grabbed your wrist gently with one hand and your fingers in the other. He showed you what your hand and fingers should do. “I can show you some tricks too.”

Yoru peaked above your head, looking straight at Chamber who was previously confused and trying to see. He could see the grin forming on the man’s face as the two of you exchanged friendly contact. He was doing this on purpose. What a rat!

“Hey, (y/n), you know I have a motorcycle too, right?”

“Hm? Really? That’s so cool. You have to show me!”

“Maybe this weekend, I can take you for a ride.”

“Aw, sure, Yoru. That would be so fun.”

No! He was NOT taking you for a ride!

You fiddled with the butterfly comb a little more before just giving up. It was a little embarrassing. “Gah, I still can’t get it-“ You had begun to say before you felt a hand on your back. “No worries, Cherie.” Chamber smoothly took the comb from you and opened it accordingly. When he finished, he handed it back to Yoru who snatched it aggressively.

“You guys make it look so easy!” You placed your hands on both of your cheeks. “We can work it out step by step later.” Chamber offered. “Also, (y/n), I must speak to you.” He eyed Yoru. “…privately.”

“Sure!”

Chamber led you to a part of the training grounds that was far, far from Yoru. This was such a different approach for him to take but your innocence made it too hard. He couldn’t bear the possibility of you and Yoru of all people.

The blatant flirting from him was shameless and too much. He really did treat you differently than the others.

“Chamber? What’s wrong? Did you feel left out?” You frowned. You knew it had to be something. The last thing you wanted was for him to not have fun.

“No, no, mademoiselle. Nothing, in particular, is wrong, it is just…” Chamber trailed off, losing his usual attitude and his ability to form sentences.

Say it.

Say it!

“Do you have something going on with Yoru?”

You blinked. Was he actually serious?

“N-No. He and I are just friends.” You answered but this only made Chamber smile and laugh. “Are you sure? He seems to think otherwise. He and the other agents are always flirting with you. You don’t really protest that either.”

“They’re just being nice, Chamber!”

“Being courteous and flirting is very different, Cherie. Your innocence shields you from the consequences and I have to admit that it drives me a little crazy.”

You knitted your eyebrows together. “What’s that supposed to mean?” You placed your hands on your hips. Chamber sighed. “I have to deal with hearing everyone else talk to you and about you in a particular way. It’s more than just being nice.”

“How do you know it’s more than being nice?”

Chamber took a step towards you. Your face heated up when his hand rested on your cheek. “Ch-Chamber?” You called for an answer but he seemed to ignore you.

“I know that it is more than being nice because I would like to admit that I am the best at making it look this good.” He told you. “I want you to be mine.”

Maybe you were oblivious all this time. It was like a pleasant surprise that came out of nowhere! It almost felt like you were in a real-life harem and one of the people you have a huge crush on had admitted their feelings for you.

Chamber leaned downward, his hand becoming more secure around your jawline and chin. Suddenly, a bunch of old memories invaded your mind. The French man made it known to give you light kisses on your hand when he would greet you. Something he hadn’t done to any other agent. You never received that from anyone else and enjoyed them a lot. They made you feel warm, causing you to get butterflies in your tummy and shy away from him.

You liked him too.

In a second, his lips finally connected to yours, lightly pressing against them. You closed your eyes as you were pulled to the tips of your toes to make up for your height. Chamber’s face was red. This was extremely bold, even for him but he had to own it.

Yoru, eavesdropping, cursed to himself. “Damnit. I knew they were dating.”

#submission #chamber headcanons valorant #valorant chamber #valorant chamber x reader #chamber #chamber x reader #fluff #[💌] - request #valorant headcanons #valorant x reader #valorant fanfiction #valorant imagines

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lya-dustin · 9 months

Text

All is Bliss

Chapter 28

cw: attempted murder(possibly really just regular murder), depression, suicide, suicidal thoughts, Aegon’s post Rook’s Rest injuries, mentions of past sexual assault, implied ritual sacrifice, infanticide

Taglist: @mercedesdecorazon @darylandbethfanforever9 @watercolorskyy @ewanmitchellcrumbs @aemondx @sweethoneyblossom1

Gif by @barbieist

No one save for the maesters, the queen mother and the lord hand are allowed to see him.

Aemond is kept out of there because they doubt his loyalties, Aemma is too unwell, and there have been instances where a servant or two has tried to off him.

“In the case of King Aegon perishing from his injuries, what would be the course of action?” Wylde asks the question the rest fear asking in front of his mother.

“I will wed his widow, open talks with the rebels and share the regency with lords of their choosing as well as with the boy’s mother until he is of age.

Should the boy die with no issue or his mother suffer a miscarriage, the succession will be secured as I am next in line and unlike my brother, have no issue stopping me from impregnating my future wife.” His words are met with a scoff from his lady mother.

“I raised no son, I see, I raised a vulture.” She comments and he tries his best not to roll his eye at her.

She always took his side, when he bullied him, she’d allow it so long as it happened behind closed doors.

He loves his mother, but her love always felt conditional.

Like she might stop loving him if he ever rose against his brother.

“Men with such injuries often perish or take their own lives, your grace, it would not hurt to be prepared.” Tyland Lannister says in his defense. “Prince Aemond must be prepared to secure the succession without giving time for the rebels to install Queen Aemma.”

“Princess Aemma, she was never crowned as his consort.” His grandsire corrects, but refuses to speak more than that.

His reputation and ego suffered quite the blow when he was dismissed and his replacement won them the battle.

“Had she been crowned as it was her due, perhaps this would have been avoided. Most believe she rebelled because she was ignored and the king’s whore paraded about in her place.” Grand Maester adds, in defense of Aemma and perhaps because he was known to harbor sympathies with the Blacks.

He and Beesbury had been opposed to the usurpation, only Beesbury was not so important as to be kept alive.

“She rebelled because we killed my half-sister by crowning Aegon on top of the humiliations my beloved elder brother had already heaped on her.

Even if we could crown her, it would not fix anything. Her supporters know her claim is greater than all of ours combined.” Aemond shook his head.

“The babe killed your sister, your sister who is the reason you have no eye and had no justice from your father that night.” His mother reminds him.

It was her bastard son who did it, he’d like to correct.

Bastards she protected the way I now protect mine.

Now that he is to be a father, he came to understand why Rhaenyra said and did what she did.

Because he would do the same.

“The babe was covered in dragon scales, with no heart and filled with maggots. If I remember my history correctly, Tyanna of the Tower poisoned Maegor’s wives so all the babes would be born like that.

Prince Daemon claims it was the work of a witch, and I am inclined to believe him.” Aemond hates the turn this has taken, but he needs them to find who hired Alys to kill Rhaenyra.

He suspects his mother.

Her sudden closeness to the witch that called him the One-Eyed King once made him suspect her of Rhaenyra’s murder.

While he hated his sister, he loves Aemma and he would imprison his own mother to keep her and the babe from dying.

What is your mother to your own son, after all?

“Everyone knows Maegor was cursed for kinslaying.” Cole says in defense of the queen.

Knowing damn well the only two people here who could have hired the witch was her half-brother and the queen she now serves.

But Cole thinks mother a goddess like the Seven Who Are One, the Mother and the Maiden rolled up in one.

A woman who can never do wrong.

A woman who could never kill another even for a what she believes may have been an honorable reason.

“Lady Laena died the same way, the babe was malformed and described the same as its half-sister, the Triarchy boasted of having hired a shadowbinder from Asshai to kill her and weaken him.

As Lord of Harrenhal and head of House Strong, I would hand over our prime suspect to the Faith and prevent such misfortune falling upon King Aegon’s only heir.” Larys finally speaks up, hardly speaks unless it is of great importance or offer a sordid deal.

It shouldn’t surprise him, House Strong had been whittled down to Larys, his elder sisters, Ida and Ada, and the cause of their family’s extinction and the burning of their seat: Alys Rivers.

“No, you cannot. Alys merely miscarried the babe the night the king died. Prince Daemon still has many enemies, any of them could’ve done it.” His mother dismissed it as madness and sought to change the topic.

But she has never been subtle even when not backed into a corner, and now they have the confirmation they needed for it.

She hired Alys to kill Rhaenyra and make Aegon king.

Alicent the Pious loved her children more than the gods themselves, she would do anything to save them.

No one could fault her, she was a mother after all, her council especially, she was a mother after all and gave them the power they so desperately wanted.

But his mother was becoming a liability.

She may be the reason her cause had something to rally behind, but her job was done when Aegon was made king.

It won’t be long before they turn against her and use Alys to kill two birds with one stone.

The state her beloved son is in breaks her heart every time she sees him.

Aegon woke up towards the end of the second week and cursed foully when shown his new reality.

The left side of his body burnt beyond recognition, steel of his armor still in whatever skin is left on his arm, his ribs and hip broken and left leg injured beyond repair. It was a gruesome sight.

“Let me die, gods-damn it.” He shouts at the maesters and her who denies him that mercy.

It is clear what she must do.

Aegon cannot live like this, her golden son cannot be this for the rest of his life.

For days she ponders whether it is worth whatever is left of her soul.

She asks the Mother for guidance, for strength to turn away from this, but the Mother does not respond.

The Crone does, silently telling her it is the only way.

“What must I pay to save him?” she asks her witch one morning while they watch little Ellyn Waters pray for her father in the Sept.

“I think you already know the price, your grace.” The witch answers and gestured to the nearly three-year-old girl at the feet of the Mother.

Ellyn Eversweet, called like her famed namesake and for the sweet smiles that look so much like the ones Aegon used to have when he was her sweet little boy.

Silvery golden waves like her and blue eyes so innocent it feels like a knife to her ever-blackening heart.

Any mother would do the same if they had the opportunity, the queen begins to tell herself as she asks her lover and curse for a solution to her son’s problems.

“She is a child!” she whispered in outrage at her own thoughts.

“His child, he gave her life and now she must give her his. It is the only way to save him.” The witch said as she lit a candle at the foot of her patron goddess.

“Do you think I would not have given my life for mine and my brother when you ordered them killed?”

“There has to be another way.” The queen tells herself and rejects her solution.

When she sees the chambermaid suffocate him with a pillow, Alicent knows she has no choice but to kill the child to save hers.

“She’s only a bastard,” she tells herself when she carries the sleeping girl and places her beside her dying father.

Aemma is better than she has been in this past fortnight.

She comes alive as her mind replayed those moments when Aegon stopped thrashing under the pillow as she and Enola the Chambermaid held it over his face.

He was dying, the guards had been alerted by Alicent’s presence in the other room and for her safety, Aemma was told to run.

It had come too easy and before the guilt over her first murder set in her bones, Aemma takes advantage of this sudden spark that ignites the fire in her blood.

Aemond is utterly oblivious as to what spurred this on.

He could never know.

He must never know.

She cannot take out this feeling on an opponent, but there is another way. Aemond was always hard as oak after a spar or an execution.

She needs him badly, so bad she cannot wait until dawn for this.

“What’s gotten into you?” he asks but does nothing to stop her. He does not mind being woken up this way, enjoys it or so he’s told her after.

“I couldn’t sleep, wanted to go for a walk, but then I remembered we never got to finish what we started that afternoon, would the prince regent like to finish what he started?” she lies with a sultry voice and a cunny wet enough to sell the lie.

Aemma has not been intimate with him since the Cargyll twins killed themselves. It has been little more than a fortnight since that afternoon and so much had happened.

It had taken a week to leave Dragonstone under capable hands, keep Aegon stable enough to return home and have the dead dragons prepared for travel. Four days and three nights because the wind and current disagreed with them and nine days and nine nights to devise a plan and execute it.

Her courage had nearly failed her, until she saw a chambermaid hiding a knife with the same objective as her.

He raped Dyana, she whispered and the queen nodded in understanding.

There was no going back after that.

In the end, Enola the chambermaid, took her knife, slit her own throat open and the truth died with her.

“We did not.” He gives her a groggy smile before helping sit on his gloriously made face.

Between the pleasure and the thrill of her first and final kill, Aemma feels the clouds leave and the sun shine again.

It all comes crashing down the next morning.

“The king is awake.”

#aemma velaryon #aemond targaryen x velaryon!oc #aemond x rhaenyra and laenor's! daughter #aemond targayen x oc #ewan mitchell #alicent hightower #alys rivers/alicent hightower #ocappreciationtag #all is bliss(in the court of aemma the great) fic #all is bliss fic

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